Ronald Lee Grimes, beloved father and husband, passed Sunday, November 16,2025 after a short stay in the hospital. Born in East Pike Run Township on November 29, 1938, he grew up in Pennsylvania and in West Virginia as well. On November 14, 1959 he was baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses and moved to Michigan where he met the love of his life, Ruth Brockway. They married two years later and three and a half years afterward became parents to a daughter and eventually two sons.
Even a brief conversation with Ron would tell you right away that you were in the presence of someone who loved and cared about people. One of the joys in his life was being able to help others in their times of need, whether replacing someone’s broken water line or repairing someone’s roof damaged by a storm. But his greatest joy was encouraging those who were troubled or depressed, using the wisdom from the Bible to comfort them. (2 Corinthians 1:3,4).
Ron was a gentle and kind soul. If you ever had the privilege to receive one of his winks accompanied by his warm smile, he was telling you he loved you and it would all work out. He loved all the children in his congregation and those he visited, and they loved him too. He was a dad to many more than just those that shared his last name. He was an elder but preferred to be called a shepherd. He was a father but preferred to be called a dad. He was never famous, but he was our hero. He enjoyed laughing but mostly at his own jokes. He was a poet and lover of words and word play. He was a builder of the physical and spiritual. He was a lover of computers, printers and apparently computer viruses.
Ron learned the value of hard work early on when he was introduced to the building trades by his Grandpa Guthrie. At 16 years of age he built his first house on his own: laying its foundation, framing it, even roughing-in and cutting-in the electrical and plumbing.
This jack-of-all-trades ended up working for Lenawee County in the maintenance department for 30 years until his retirement in 2002. Then he continued to do what he did best: quickly learn new skills and solve problems in an innovative way. Many people would say about him: “If there’s a difficult challenge, give it to Ron. He can figure it out.”
From his active work life to his eagerness to read and learn, it all centered around his love of his family and his strong faith. Not only did he love reading and memorizing poetry, he loved writing it as well, often composing poems for his friends to encourage them during their trials. He taught us many lessons we will never forget, but none greater than how to live a life in service to others even when struggling through pain and uncertainty. We are confident that he is resting in the safest place possible, God’s memory. We can’t wait to see him again.
He is survived by his wife, Ruth, his daughter Jessica, his oldest son Joel (Shonda) and his youngest son Benjamin, his sister-in-law, Gloria Brockway and his sister Nancy Chorpenning. He was preceded in death by his parents, Joe and Hilda Grimes and his brother, Bob.
A Memorial Service will be held on November 29, 2025, at the Tecumseh Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 1200 Brown St, Tecumseh MI at 3:00PM.
Friends can express sympathies to the family online by visiting the tribute wall at www.marryfh.com. Arrangements have been made with the guidance of the Marry Funeral Home, Tecumseh.