From Mr Kelly Baldwin at First Baptist Church Bladenboro -

I have good remembrances of Ron. When he brought your family to Bladenboro you all were a wonderful asset to our community. Ron was a highly intelligent, Christian man. We had several good conversations that ranged from theology to Pine forests, to the unimaginable pain of losing children to tragedy. He was a man of vision and foresight. He was my friend.

I was extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Ron here recently. It is no exaggeration to say he was one of the kindest and most gentle of souls I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Despite the many tribulations he endured throughout his life, Ron maintained a seemingly ever-present smile and devotion to his family and faith.

He helped give me my first job out of college working for his forestry business many years ago despite having not done much more than weed-pulling in my mom's gardens growing up. And although I clearly wasn't cut out for that kind of work, he always maintained a cheery patience as he showed me better ways to do what I was assigned (often while peppering in stories about old Yankee greats).

Ron was the kind of person you realized everyone probably owed a favor (or several) to. This was a product of the generosity he shared towards others, a truly selfless individual that always put friends and family before himself.

From getting driven around in his old Austin-Healey -- to hacking away invasive undergrowth with machetes while out on work, I will continue to carry nothing but enriching and positive memories of my time spent together with Ron. While it is easy to say the world is a little less cheery today than it was a week ago, I know that his devoted and loving demeanor has been etched upon his wonderful family, ensuring his legacy remains alive through them.

With much love, Matthew

I have many fond memories of road trips with Dad. I often went to work sites with him around the Sandhills region, especially during the summers. He taught me how to plant trees with a dibble bar… I got to fly in herbicide helicopters…  My favorite was prescribed burning in the winters. We would come home covered in soot, head to toe - Mom wouldn’t let us in the house until we stripped and went straight to the shower!

On the long drives we sang along to Lifetime of Romance oldies songs or hymns… stopped at gas stations for trail mix and V8 tomato juice… he taught me how to read those giant Rand McNally road maps… I remember picking his brain about anything I could possibly think to ask! Though our years together were short, we had so much quality time together.