Ronald (Marshall) Snyder

September 14, 1970 - June 28, 2019

From Fellow Warrior Cherish Michael Blair:

Ronald (Marshall) Snyder, Class of 1988
June 28, 2019

I have some sad news to share.. Another Warrior gone too soon.. Ronald (Marshall) Snyder, Class of 1988, passed away on June 28, 2019. I do not have any further details, and can share more if I get more.

I met Ron in AFJROTC, and he always acted like a big brother to me.

I never got to reconnect with him except for a few messages, but thought we would be able to, now that I am in Colorado. Hugs for all who need them.

If anyone has any pictures of him, I briefly messaged his daughter and she said he hated having pics taken, so they don't have as many as she would like.

Edit: I did get family permission before posting.

-Cherish

From Ron's daughter, Aurora:

We are raising funds to help pay for my Dad's memorial service. His passing was sudden & unexpected, and my mom, brothers & I are not prepared to celebrate his life the way he deserves.

Ron was a family man and proud of whatever he did. He was married to my mom, Christina, for 23 years as well as a proud father of 3: Rodrick, 29, Aurora, 22 and Clay, 13.

Ron was well known and loved throughout our community and his untimely death is truly devastated our family. We humbly thank you in advance if you're able to donate and we would greatly appreciate if you could share this with your friends and family as well.

Thank you so much and God bless. -Aurora

From Fellow '88er, Lindy:

The first time I saw a comment from Ron pop up in one of the online Warrior groups, I knew exactly who he was. Ron and I weren't friends in high school. We moved in different circles, but there was something about Ron that I always noticed: he was super quiet and always seemed to be thinking something he just wasn't saying. He struck me as kind and sincere, but other than that, our paths really only crossed in the halls of HH Arnold between classes.

Fast forward to July 2018... I sent out a message to the late 80s folks about the upcoming reunion. Ron responded, asking how he could go about getting a replacement varsity letter. Once I told him who I was, he lit up and became... almost chatty, which is saying something for someone as quiet as Ron typically was. Ron, as a man, had a lot more confidence than I remembered in high school. He told me that years of being a police officer had helped him out a ton when it came to speaking to people.

Ron told me he'd had some ups and downs, that he'd separated from his wife after 23 years together, that he remained close to and very involved in the lives of his kids. He also shared that he'd had some medical issues and was on disability.

We talked about our time at HH Arnold. I told him what I remembered about him. He admitted he was really surprised, actually, shocked was the word he used, that I remembered him. And that he thought he had been completely under the radar, 'admiring me from afar.' Wow, what happened to shy, quiet Ron? He flat out told me he'd had a crush on me for years. I felt the compliment of it, and also I was appreciative that he felt comfortable enough to tell me. We both chuckled about our teenage selves, how blind and clueless we so often were. It was an enjoyable conversation. Even though he had some troubles, he seemed generally at peace with his situation. And he was definitely proud of his kids-that was clear.

Ron talked quite a bit about one of the things he was most proud of back in school... earning a varsity letter at HH Arnold. And that he was so sad that he had lost that letter in a move somewhere along the way. He asked me if I knew where he could buy one. I told him I had one I could send to him, and we talked about the idea of getting him a varsity letter jacket to go with it. He hadn't thought about trying to get a jacket, but the patch seemed really important to him.

We continued to chat here and there online. I also traded a few comments with his mom, Terry, in the Lindsey Air Station group that I run on facebook -she worked in the Stars and Stripes book store by the post office at Lindsey Air Station for quite a few years. I wish I could have gotten Ron to come to a reunion, not just to hand off that varsity letter, but also so he could hang out with his old classmates as adults. I think he would have been surprised at how accepted he'd have been among us. But alas, it didn't come to be.

As introverted as Ron was, I know he treasured his time in Wiesbaden. And even though there aren't a lot of Wiesbaden Warriors who remember him, I do. And Cherish Michael Blair does. And so do his friends from his ROTC days at HH Arnold. And I'm here to say that you are missed, Ron.

Instead of posting a picture of Ron's final resting place, I'm sharing the one thing that I know would have warmed Ron's heart.

Ron, this is for you.