Ronald Norman Odell

Ronald Norman (Ron) Odell, 82 years of age, passed peacefully into the Lord’s care on August 10, 2023. He is survived by his wife Mary, son Kevin, daughter Jamie, grandson Ryan and brother Ted. He was predeceased by his parents Walt and Alys Lasz and sister-in-law Charlotte Odell. Ron and Mary were married on September 5, 1969, and began a beautiful life together filled with laughter, love, friendship, and adventure. They raised Kevin and Jamie, and enjoyed spending time with their grandson, Ryan. One of Ron’s proudest moments was watching Ryan graduate from WSU earlier this year.

After high school, Ron served in the United States Army at Fort Lewis, WA from 1963 to 1965 when he was honorably discharged. He then started with Burlington Northern Railroad where he spent 35 years. In 1990 Ron received a well-deserved promotion and moved to Seattle where he and Mary live for 30 years before retiring in 1994 as Manager of Crew Administration, which made him responsible for the crucial task of ensuring the trains were properly staffed and stayed on the exact schedule.

In 1971, Ron moved the family to Otis Orchards where they had a mini farm. He and his wife designed a beautiful parklike yard where they held large family reunions. Their children have many fond memories of raising horses, riding motorcycles and snowmobiles on the property, as well as hanging out with friends in the pool that he built.

Shortly before Ron’s retirement, he and Mary purchased their first Grand Banks boat and began enjoying the San Juan Islands and Canadian waters. Upon retiring, Ron and Mary occupied much of their time with refurbishing boats and remodeling homes. Ron and Mary were always willing and ready to share their talents with friends and family.

One of the boats they worked on took them to Cape Coral, Florida where they quickly fell in love with the area and have maintained a Florida winter residence there for the last 20 years. After retirement they enjoyed multiple trips to the countries of Europe, with Italy being one of their favorites.

Ron will be remembered by many for his witty sense of humor, generosity and passion for helping others. Our hearts won’t be whole “until we are together again”.

A Celebration of Ron’s Life will be held Sunday, October 29, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. at CenterPlace Regional Event Center 2426 N. Discovery Place, Spokane Valley, WA. A light lunch will be served following the service. Please RSVP below so the caterers can plan properly.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the American Heart Association or Tunnel to Towers.

Please share your memories of Ron on his tribute wall.