Ralph Steurer
Ralph William Steurer, 90, husband of the late Carol Brann Steurer, passed away peacefully on July 15. Born on July 17, 1933, in New York City, he was the son of the late Alberta Knower (Muhlhan) and Ralph Emerson Steurer.
Ralph is survived by his son, John E Steurer and wife Charlene (Calderone) Steurer; two grandchildren, Jessica Conley and husband Kyle, and Jennifer Steurer; his brother, Ronald Steurer and wife Barbara; his nephews, Mark, Timothy and Matthew Steurer; his brother-in- law, Paul Brann and wife Rita; his nephews, David Carlson and wife Leanne, Len Carlson and wife Maureen, and William Carlson; and his niece, Jane (Carlson ) Rossi and husband John. He is predeceased by his father-in-law, Herbert Brann, mother- in-law, Mabel Brann, and brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Arnie and Betty Carlson.
Ralph graduated from Mamaroneck High School in 1951. After high school , he attended Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, North Carolina. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1955. Ralph was a passionate Wake Forest sports fan, where it was very common to see him wearing his Wake Forest merchandise. He served in the United States Army as a military intelligence specialist in the Korean War, from May 1956 to May 1958. Upon his return from Korea, his family moved to Berlin, Connecticut, where he met his future wife. They married on October 15, 1960, and celebrated 49 years of marriage before Carol passed in January of 2009.
Ralph worked 33 years for The Colgate Palmolive Company as retail merchandiser and account manager calling on Springfield Sugar. He was selected three times to the Top Pro Club for sales excellence, and in 1991, he was inducted into the Colgate Hall of Fame. Outside of working at Colgate, Ralph was an active member in the Berlin community, especially youth baseball. From 1970-74, Ralph was the manager of the Berlin Little League Cardinals, and he led his teams to four consecutive championships. He also managed the 1973-74 Berlin Little League All-Star teams, reaching the district championship in 1974. He went on to Babe Ruth Baseball and led his team to a championship as well. Ralph was actively involved in the Berlin High School Athletic Boosters Club.
Ralph was an incredible father who never missed his son’s basketball or baseball games, both at Berlin High School and Western New England College, even if the games were on the road. For hobbies, Ralph enjoyed playing golf at Berlin’s Timberlin Golf Club, where he scored his first and only hole-in-one, on the par-3 fourth hole, on Aug. 16, 2006.
In April 2022, Ralph moved to The Golden Pond Communities in Hopkinton to be closer to his son and daughter-in- law. There was nothing more important that brought joy to Ralph than spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren. A very special thanks to Lisa Jacobs and the entire professional staff at Golden Pond. Ralph especially looked forward to Alexandria Connolly’s performances each month at Golden Pond. Also, a special thank you to Heather, Kim and Nane from the Brookhaven Hospice team for their love and care for Ralph over the past six months.
Funeral services are being held privately, with interment at the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne. Arrangements are under the care of the Chesmore Funeral Home of Hopkinton. Tributes can be made at ChesmoreFuneralHome.com. In lieu of flowers, donations in Ralph Steurer’s memory may be made to Wounded Warrior Project, Donor Care Center, P.O. Box 758541, Topeka, KS 66675.
Obituaries are submissions, typically from funeral homes, that are not subject to the same level of editorial oversight as the rest of the Hopkinton Independent. Obituaries may be edited for grammatical and factual mistakes and clarifications and shortened for space considerations.
It was a pleasure to have Ralph in the Golden Pond community. He was a kind, loving man who never failed to put a smile on my face. He was loved by all of the staff and residents at Golden Pond. He will be greatly missed and will always have a special place in our hearts. My condolences to his family. May his beautiful soul rest in peace.