Ronald Joseph Deno, 69, of West Lafayette, passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, November 23, 2024.
He was born September 22, 1955, in Lafayette, to the late Elbert and Loma (Ropp) Deno. Ron graduated from Tri-County High School in 1973. In his early twenties, he began working for his father’s business, eventually leading the business upon his father’s passing in 1983. Ron was a long-time resident of Jasper and White Counties, where he married (Gloria Royer) and fathered two children before moving to Lafayette in 1991.
Ron owned, managed, and operated two businesses, Rite-Way Concrete Seal and Rite-Way Industrial Services. He was passionate, hard-working, and a natural born leader. He never met a stranger that he couldn’t connect with, and he had great pride in taking care of family, employees, clients, and performing random acts of kindness.
In 2015, he married Ashley Greeley, “the love of his life” at Purdue University’s Ross Ade Stadium. Ron was a very spiritual person. He and Ashley attended Southeast Christian Church virtually every Sunday morning, usually while walking at Prophetstown State Park. He enjoyed playing golf at Purdue and the Elks, shooting hoops, exercising at the gym, enjoying morning sunrises, traveling, meeting new people, cycling, and being a cat dad to their 3 cats (Ripken, Ozzie, and Jeep). Ron was an avid fan of Purdue sports and the Chicago Bulls. He and Ashley enjoyed attending Baltimore Orioles games at Camden Yards.
Surviving are his wife, Ashley Greeley of West Lafayette, his son, Brandon (Lasy) Deno of San Francisco, CA, his daughter, Courtney Deno of Lafayette; Five grandchildren, Mia and Myles Deno, Antonio Yang, and Shane and Lauryn Kirkhoff. Also surviving are his sister, Peggy Meyer of Wolcott, her daughter, Morgan Meyer, his brother, Roger Deno of Michigan, step-brother, Lewie Drake of Wisconsin, nephew Matt Deno, and nieces Kimberly, Stephanie, Tiffany, and Angela Deno.
Ronald was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Steve Deno.
Visitation will be from 3:00 pm until the time of the Celebration of Life service at 5:00 pm on Saturday, November 30, 2024 at Soller-Baker Lafayette Chapel, 400 Twyckenham Blvd. Lafayette, IN 47909.
Memorial contributions may be made to: NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) www.nami.org.