Ronald Earl Moore's Obituary
With profound sadness, we announce the passing of our beloved father and grandfather, Ronald Earl Moore. Ronald, known to many as Ron, will be remembered as a devoted, patient, and caring man.
At the age of 95, Ron passed away peacefully at his home on the morning of Tuesday, April 7. His long-time caregiver, Catherine, was with him when he passed.
Ron was predeceased by his wife Phyllis, parents Earl and Mary Moore, sisters Violet Lowther, Genevieve Ayles, and Ruth Taylor. Ronald’s memory lives on through those he loved and cherished most: his three daughters – Linda (Terry) Rogers, Karen Trummert, and Marianne (Louis) Bigelow. A photo of the three adorned his mantle throughout his final days.
He is also survived by his many grandchildren, with whom he shared a close and active role in their lives: Lenny, Kara, and Kane Rogers, Rachel Trummert, and Nick, and Alex Bigelow. He is also survived by 10 great grandchildren and 2 great, great grandchildren.
Ronald’s life reads like a novel from a different time.
Born in 1930 to Earl and Mary Moore, he was raised in Converse County, Wyoming, on the family homestead—a place he described as “windblown, dry, barren land, hot in the summer and cold in the winter.”
As he approached his 17th birthday in Douglas, Wyoming, Ronald asked his father to take him into town. Though it was expected he would one day take over the family ranch, Ronald was “determined to not spend the rest of my life staring at the backside of a team of plow horses.”
He soon caught a ride with a truck hauling circus and carnival equipment. After spending the fall with his sister, Violet, he was encouraged to visit an Army recruiter.
Impressed by the Army Air Corps, Ronald enlisted in 1947 with the notarized permission of his parents.
Ronald’s military journey began at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas.
Over the years, his service took him across the country and beyond, including Chanute AFB in Rantoul, Illinois (1948); Elmendorf AFB in Anchorage, Alaska (1948–1951); Thule AFB in Greenland (1953–1954; Ronald said of Thule: “My first impression was that I was not going to spend any more time here than necessary.”); Presque Isle Air Force Base in Presque Isle, Maine (1954); Truax AFB in Madison, Wisconsin (1954); McChord AFB in Tacoma, Washington (1954–1959); Hickam AFB in Honolulu, Hawaii (1959–1963); and finally Travis AFB in Fairfield, California (1963–1967), where he completed his service and retired on July 7, 1967.
Ronald, throughout his 20 years of service, achieved the rank of U.S. Air Force Senior NCO Master Sargent E-7 and retired as a C-141 Starlifter Flight Engineer. He transitioned to civilian life, working for Boeing as a Systems Analyst for nearly 20 years before retiring in 1986.
Though the Air Force may have been Ronald’s first love, it was not his truest.
That honor belonged to Phyllis Mojean Lones, whom he met in 1956.
Phyllis, a civil service employee serving as a secretary in the 25th Division
Headquarters, married Ronald just a year later in the fall of 1957, in Sheridan, Wyoming.
Phyllis brought with her two daughters from a previous marriage - Linda and Karen. The love Ronald carried for them was captured in his memoir: “I had the very good fortune of adopting them both and giving them my last name.”
Marianne, Ronald and Phyllis’s youngest daughter, joined the family a short time later, in June 1958. Ronald was never a man of many words; instead, his actions spoke volumes, shaping the beautiful life he built for those around him. He touched the lives of all who knew and loved him, embodying quiet strength, integrity, and resilience—and, above all, a deep and unwavering love for his wife, Phyllis, his daughters, and his grandchildren.
His presence will be deeply missed and can never be replaced. His love, though not loud, was constant – an irreplaceable and steady force that will live throughout his family because of him.
What’s your fondest memory of Ronald?
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Share a story where Ronald's kindness touched your heart.
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