Ronald Roger Braun

Ronald Roger Braun left this life on April 21, 2020 at his home in Murray. He was born on December 10, 1944 at a home nestled in the Vosges mountains in Reipertswiller, France to Willie and Emma Kaiser Braun. At the time of his birth, Reipertswiller was occupied by the German army and a battle was raging in the area where the home was. His mother recounts hearing close gun fire and many explosions during his birth. Shortly after his birth, his father “borrowed” a German ambulance and quickly removed Ron, his older sister, Alice, his mother, and grandmother from their home to a safer location in Strasbourg, a larger city located on the French side of the French-German border. His father returned to Reipertswiller a few days later to find the house had been bombed and burned to the ground with all their belongings destroyed. There was only rubble remaining. So, you could say that Ron came into this world with a bang! Ron lived with his parents and older sister, Alice, in France until February 1950 when the family sailed to the United States to start a new life. They arrived in Utah and lived out their lives in the Salt Lake City and Holladay areas. Ron served in the Army from 1963 to 1973.
He married Sherry Hansen in 1964 and they had two sons, Ronald David (Dave) in 1968 and Robert Todd (Todd) in 1970. They later divorced. Dave preceded Ron in death in May of 1987. Ron has two beautiful grandchildren through Todd and Doreen, Delaney Grace, 16 and Jackson David, 14.
Ron worked in construction most of his life; his last job he worked for Edman Construction. Ron was a member of the Boy Scouts of America. He earned his Eagle Scout on May 16, 1960 and was immensely proud of his accomplishment. One of his fondest memories of his scouting years was a two-week camping trip in July of 1959 with his troop through Jackson, WY, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, and many other stops along the way. As an adult, he enjoyed racing cars, and during his younger years was on the Gordon Wilson Racing Team where they raced a Camaro and 2 Corvettes. In the late 1960’s he would drive after work on Fridays with the team to Cotati, CA, a town just north of San Francisco, or to various other towns in California to race on Saturday and Sunday and then drive back after the race on Sunday night to Salt Lake City in time for work on Monday morning. He enjoyed building and restoring cars and always had a project going with one car or another. He also enjoyed a good game of golf. In his later years, Ron enjoyed traveling, especially to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. He spent many a relaxing summer vacationing there.
Ron had many health issues in his later life, and we are glad that he is no longer tied to a physical body that gave him so many challenges. He was preceded in death by his parents, his only sibling, his sister, Alice Schaelling and his son, David. He is survived by his son Todd, his daughter-in-law, Doreen, his grandchildren, Delaney and Jackson, and his cat, Roman.
A private service will be held later. Friends and family may visit the online guestbook; please share a memory of Ron at http://www.memorialutah.com/obituary/holladay-cottonwood/ronald-roger-braun/
We would love to hear more about his life.