- Date Of Birth: May 11, 1919
- Date Of Death: April 29, 2008
- State: Michigan
Ralph R. Bartelt, age 88, passed away on Tuesday, April 29, 2008. He was born on May 11, 1919 in Jackson, Wisconsin the son of Paul W. and Beata (Kurth) Bartelt. After elementary school he attended Concordia High School and Concordia Teachers College at River Forest, Illinois. After graduation, he taught in several Lutheran Schools in Chicago, Kaukakee, Milwaukee, Conklin, MI and Skokie, IL. On June 29, 1946 he married Lorna T. Haller in Kankakee, IL. He joined the Ionia Schools teaching staff in 1960, and retired in 1981. He was active in the Ionia, the Michigan, and the National Education Associations. He was an active member of the St. John Lutheran Church of Ionia, and the Lutheran Camp Concordia near Greenville, MI. He also spent many summers working with the exhibitors at the Ionia Free Fair. Since his retirement he has been supportive of the Ionia Commission on Aging, the Ionia County Historical Society and the Michigan Education Association. He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Lorna. Surviving are his son, William Bartelt; three grandchildren, Cindy Kershbaum, and Shelly and Jeff Bartelt; 4 Great Grandchildren; brother, Paul E. (Virginia) Bartelt.
