Ronald Leonard Roszkowski

Ronald L. Roszkowski, DDS, age 69, passed away Monday, March 29, 2021. He was surrounded by loving family. He was born on June 8, 1951 in Gary, Indiana to Michael J. and Jane B. (Nadolski) Roszkowski.

Ron attended grade school at St. Peter and Paul Catholic School, and graduated from Andrean High School in Merrillville, Indiana in 1969, where he was a member of the National Honor Society, and received a Public Speaking Award. He attended Purdue University for one year, were he received the President Hovedy Award for Academic Achievement, before transferring to Indiana University, Bloomington. He graduated with a degree in psychology from IU Bloomington in 1973, and was an Honors Student. While at I.U. Bloomington, Ron was employed as a research assistant. He was a research assistant to Dr. J. Dinsmore in the area of the Psychology of Learning. He was also a research assistant in a study of didactic personal interaction and coalition formation. His special interests included genetics, genetic behavior, and neural physiology. His minor area of study was biological sciences.

Prior to attending dental school, Ron worked many jobs. As a young boy, he had a paper route, and worked as a grocery store bagger in Merrillville, Indiana. He worked as a milkman with a delivery route for Dixie Dairy in Gary, Indiana, as a salesman at Montgomery Wards in Glen Park, Indiana, and he was also a substitute teacher for middle and high schools in Northwest Indiana. During dental school, he worked part-time selling men’s suits. He also worked for Coca-Cola/Seven-Up selling drink mixes.

Ron graduated from the Indiana University School of Dentistry in Indianapolis in 1979. During his senior year at IUSD he was a Local Anesthesia Clinic/Instructor. Ron worked part-time helping care for Dr. Jim Dirlam’s farm in Lebanon, Indiana. While in private practice dentistry in Merrillville, Indiana, Ron was also a Dental Hygiene Clinic Instructor at Indiana University School of Dentistry, Northwest Campus in Gary, Indiana.

Ron was a member of the Psi Omega Dental Fraternity, where he met his future wife, Linda. After receiving his Doctorate in Dental Surgery, Ron married Linda K. (Eber), and they moved to northwest Indiana where he was an associate dentist for a few months, before buying a dental practice from a retiring dentist in Merrillville, IN. In 1989, Ron and Linda, with their three young children, moved to Carmel, Indiana, after selling Ron’s dental practice in Merrillville, Indiana. Ron bought a small start-up dental practice, Carmel Dental Care, for a couple years from 1989-1991. He sold the Carmel practice in 1991, after buying a dental practice from a retiring dentist near 71st and Graham Road in Indianapolis. (It was said that Ron gave away more free dentistry in two weeks than the previous dentist did in forty years.) Ron provided Preventive Dentistry presentations to local schools in Carmel, Indiana from 1990-1998. He also welcomed dental field trips to his office in Indianapolis. In 2001, Ron sold his private dental practice and retired due to health. He spent many of the next fifteen years volunteering in the Periodontics/Dental Hygiene Department at the Indiana University School of Dentistry. He also volunteered for the Ivy Tech Dental Assisting Program in Anderson, Indiana. In 2018, he worked for Mid-America/PrevMed providing dental services in various nursing homes. The last couple years, he worked occasionally as a supervising/substitute dentist in Indianapolis.

Over the years, Ron enjoyed tennis, golf, fishing, gardening, photography, traveling, family reunions, and singing in the church choir. Ron and Linda traveled 46 of the United States of America, including many wonderful National and State Parks. Ron also enjoyed playing couples euchre.

Ron was a former member of S.S. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Merrillville, IN; St. Matthias Catholic Church in Crown Point, IN; and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church where he sang in the choir, taught CCD, and was a Eucharistic Minister. Ron started attending St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in 2002, joined in 2006, and joined the Chancel Choir in 2007.

Ron was a lifetime member of the American Dental Association, Indiana Dental Association, and the Indianapolis District Dental Society (former member of the Northwest District Dental Society). He was a lifetime member of Indiana University Alumni Association.

Ron was preceded in death by his parents, Michael Joseph Roszkowski and Jane (Jenny) B. Roszkowski; brother, Michael John Roszkowski; and sister, Loretta J. (Tony) Grella.

Ron is survived by his wife of 41 years, Linda K. (Eber) of Carmel, IN; two daughters, Kristen Stephens and Julie Walker of Carmel, IN; one son, Jeffrey R. Roszkowski, of Carmel, IN; and two sisters, Barbara J. (Dr. Paul) Bivens of Safety Harbor, Florida and Diane H. Figueroa of Riverview, Florida; Mother-in-law, Loretta Eber of Noblesville, Indiana; and brother-in-law, Dr. Bob (Debbie) Eber of Ann Arbor, Michigan. He is also survived by two grandsons, Graham Walker and Gabriel Stephens; and one granddaughter, Samantha Stephens, all of Carmel, IN. Ron is also survived by many wonderful nieces, nephews, and cousins.

A visitation for Ronald will be held Saturday, April 3, 2021 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM at St. Luke's United Methodist Church, 100 W. 86th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46260 followed by a funeral service at 11:00am. Burial will follow at Carmel Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in memory of Ronald Roszkowski to support Dr. Dan Catenacci’s cancer research at the University of Chicago Medicine. Checks may be made payable to the “University of Chicago Medicine” and sent to the following address: University of Chicago Gift Administration and Business Data, Ronald Roszkowski Memorial, 5235 S. Harper Court, 4th Floor, Chicago, IL 60615. Or, you can donate online at: giving.uchicago.edu/Ronald-Roszkowski.