Richard Murray Ramer

Dr. Richard Murray Ramer, born June 13, 1936, passed painlessly on Sept 28th after a brief bout with pneumonia. He is survived by his children, Nick (53), Michelle (53), Marc (51), and Jim (48), and his identical twin brother Dr. Robert Ramer, and sister Elaine Pepper (88).

"Dicky", as he was known for decades by his family, was born and raised in Passaic, NJ. He attended Lehigh University, then got his PhD in Chemical Engineering from the Stephens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ.

Dr. Ramer's post-doctoral work in ophthalmology brought him to the University of Florida, the state that, other than for a few fondly remembered years in New Orleans, was his home for the rest of his life. His career took him to Oxy, AMAX, Witco, the Florida DOT, and a startup, doing either chemical processing scale-up work or polymer engineering for various applications. But his passion always lay in the simpler things. He was active in the YMCA Indian Guides with his sons growing up, eventually serving as "Chief Thundercloud" for the Gainesville, FL chapter. He was a voracious fan of the Florida Gators, mainly football, but embraced other sports as well. He laughed heartily at a good joke, ate ravenously at a good meal, and conquered easily even the most challenging crossword puzzles.

He was active for decades with barbershop quartet singing, a fixture as a baritone in the BarberGators chorus (he was named BarberGator of the Year in 1977) and two state-caliber quartets - the Hogtown Howlers (3rd place, fall 1974) and Three States Four (6th place, spring 1976). Patriotic songs routinely brought him to tears. But more than anything, he loved his family. He could go long stretches without seeing his siblings, and then fall right back into banter years in the crafting, reminiscing about childhood icons (like Rutt's Hut in NJ) or telling an off-color joke with his brother, both of whom share wonderful comedic timing.

Dr. Ramer lived a good and simple life, quietly teaching the virtue of taking joy in small things, never predisposed to pursue material wealth, but rather to the wealth of his family's love and his own gentle spirit.