Ralph L. Bauer

Ralph Leonhard Bauer died peacefully on March 20, 2026. He was born March 12, 1940, in Karlsruhe, Germany, to Johanna Bauer and László Rácz. Johanna and Ralph came to New York City in 1949, and he became a US citizen in 1955. He graduated from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn in 1962, with a degree in aerospace engineering and worked for the Raytheon Corporation for 33 years.

Ralph and his wife Susan moved to Chatham from Nashua, NH, in 1999. He was very active in the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House (UUMH) in Chatham, serving as chair of the Building and Grounds Committee and Pledge Chair for many years. He was an avid philatelist and first day cover dealer. He loved the New England Patriots and the Boston Red Sox.

He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Susan; four children, Kurt Bauer of Miami, FL, Mark (Kristine) Bauer, of Calgary, AB, Cindi (Adam) Hodgdon, of Amherst, NH, and Deb Bruce of Oneonta, NY; and six grandchildren, Anna, Matthew, Nova, and Izzi Bauer and Addison and Lucie Hodgdon. He was predeceased by his parents and his stepfather, Robert Michel.

In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory can be made to the Rogers Maintenance Fund at UUMH, P.O. Box 18, Chatham,l or to the Chatham Fire Association, 135 Depot Road, Chatham.

Services will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House, 819 Main Street, on Saturday, April 18, 2026, at 2 p.m.