Ronald Edward Luhman

Ronald Edward Luhman died June 22, 2012 with his beloved wife, Shirley, at his side . He was born November 22, 1931 in Dickinson, North Dakota to Edward A. and Elvira Lund Luhman. He was the second of two children. Edward was the President of the Dickinson Bottling Works and Elvira a teacher.

After graduating high school in 1949, Ron attended Dickinson State University (formerly Dickinson State College) for two years. He then enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1951, during the Korean War. Ron served the majority of his tour of duty in the legal and personnel department at the Naval Air Technical Training Center in Norman, Oklahoma.

In 1953, Ron married Shirley Maas of Killdeer, North Dakota. Ron was persuaded by Shirley to settle in Seattle where he graduated from the University of Washington in 1957 with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, majoring in accounting. He was a member of Beta Alpha Psi, national honorary accounting fraternity.

Ron was always very active in activities at the University of Washington, having been a founding member, Trustee and President of the Accounting Development Fund, a Life-time Member of the Alumni Association and the President's Club, a member of the Tyee Club and the Tyee Sports Council. He was an avid Husky fan, attending games for over 50 years. His wardrobe consisted of mostly purples.

Upon graduation from the University of Washington, Ron joined Ernst and Young (successor to Arthur Young). He became a partner in 1969 and was managing partner of the Seattle office for ten years. The family joined Ron in New York City (Scarsdale) for a year while he was in the Home Office Technical Department solving public filing issues and accounting and auditing technical problems. Ron served as Vice President, Director and Committee Chairman of the Washington Society of CPAs and was also a member of the American Institute of CPA and Financial Executives Institute.

Ron took on positions of leadership in his community serving as an officer and board member of his several churches, PONCHO, Easter Seals of Washington, Spastic Aid Council, Boys Club, Bellevue Breakfast Rotary and Horizon House. He also served on several boards of commercial companies. His memberships included the Rainier Club, Washington Athletic Club and Overlake Golf & Country Club.

Ron was the beloved husband of Shirley. They were married for 59 years and were blessed with three children: R. Dale (Theresa), D. Ward (Susan) and Kelly (John) Abbott. They have three grandchildren, Crescent (Aaron) Loehr, Kern and Shelly, and two great-grandchildren, Jack and Cedar Loehr.

Family was all important to Ron. He was always looking forward to the next Birthday party or holiday event where all would gather.

He will be remembered as a loving father and husband, a caring mentor of young accountants and auditors and a problem solver for business associates and peers.

Remembrances may be sent to the Northwest Kidney Centers, P.O. Box 3035, Seattle, WA 98114, www.nwkidney.org, OR the University of Washington Foster School of Business, Office of External Relations, Box 353200, Seattle, WA 98195-3200, www.foster.washington.edu.

Shirley’s remembrance of her husband Ron:

Ron Luhman was born in Dickinson, North Dakota near the beautiful badlands. As a little boy Ron would visit various uncles’ farms every summer. He LOVED the country. As he grew older, he would spend the entire summer on someone's farm.

At the age of twelve he was once again on his uncle's farm. The uncle said he had to leave for two weeks and delegated all the chores to Ron. There were no cell phones to call Mom or Dad to "COME AND GET ME!" Many farms had no phones at all. Little Ronnie had to milk twelve cows by hand every morning and evening, feed the cattle and chickens, bale hay, everything integrated with running a farm. When the uncle returned he promised Ron a "Mrs." Pig for all his good work so Ron could eventually begin his own farm. He never did get the pig. That was the summer he truly learned about hard work, ethics, and honesty. It was a life lesson for a small boy.

Ron did continue to go to another relative's farm. He loved the family and rode his horse bare-back three miles to Bible school. He learned to round up cattle, work in the fields, and do farm maintenance. Every farm kid learns to drive at a young age. Ron could drive a tractor! HE WAS A HAPPY BOY! His life's dream was to own a cattle ranch. Even after retirement he would think about a ranch. Fortunately for Shirley, he could never afford the kind of ranch he wanted. However, Shirley allowed him to decorate the family room with boots, bridles and a saddle, plus a pair of Texas longhorns his children gave him. HE WAS A HAPPY MAN!

He finished two years of college before he joined the Navy and served his country for four years during the Korean War. He and Shirley then moved to Seattle to be near relatives and he enrolled at the University of Washington while working 30-40 hours a week. His work ethic had stayed with him. He graduated with Dean's honors and immediately went to work for Arthur Young & Co. Ron rose through the ranks, soon becoming a manager and then on to the Home Office in New York to prepare for becoming Managing Partner of the Seattle office. He had to travel a great amount, meeting and working with many large national companies. Locally, many of his clients referred to him as their "guru". His real joy was mentoring young CPA'S and watching them grow. After retiring, he accepted several consulting positions that sent him to much of Europe and South Africa. Ron was absolutely thrilled that his only grandson became a CPA also and went to work for the same firm! (Now Ernst & Young).

It wasn't all work......he and Shirley managed to escape to Hawaii every winter and were very fortunate to travel the world on business and pleasure.

Ron had a deep and abiding love for family. He was very close to his parents and sister, numerous cousins, but most of all, his immediate family. He was forever thinking of the next family event to be planned. He expressed his love often. He was thrilled to become a great grandfather to twins Cedar and Jack, now two years old. He enjoyed a wonderful Father's Day with the entire family. Birthdays, holidays..........he couldn't wait. Everyone knew that Ron knew the best steak places around and eagerly accepted his invitations.

He LOVED HUSKY FOOTBALL! Fall was his "Happy Season". Football, hunting and on to Husky basketball, always with family or friends in tow for tailgating. About thirty years ago he had a pair of gold pants tailored to go with his many purple tops. Since that time a few other gold slacks have appeared at Husky games.

Ron loved God, his family and his country. He will be loved and cherished forever by Shirley and his children, Dale, Ward, and Kelly, their families and his grandchildren.