Rolland Russel Ritter

He was born in Tilden, Nebraska, where he grew up on a farm. He attended a one-room schoolhouse and graduated from Tilden High School in 1942. Awarded a scholarship at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, his studies were interrupted when he served in the Navy until the end of WWII.

His on-ship training in communications technology inspired Rolland to switch his major from business to electrical engineering upon returning to college. There, he met his future wife, an artist and writer. He graduated first in his class of six hundred.

They moved to St. Paul, where he designed and built a house, and enjoyed a long, successful career at Control Data in electronic development and design. Five of his inventions have been patented. A supportive and loving husband, Rolland applied his mechanical savvy to help his wife self-publish her novels decades before it became a trend.

Despite his pioneering work in computers, Rolland preferred to communicate the old-fashioned way. He and his brother, a farmer and wood carver, religiously sent weekly letters back and forth, containing long, vivid descriptions of problematic machinery—tractors, steam engines, manual typewriters—and ideas for fixing them. Rolland’s kids fondly recall being driven around on his motor scooter.

Since boyhood, Rolland was a devout Christian Scientist. He refused medicine and did not go to doctors, upheld by his strong faith. Sharp to the very end, his mind was always churning. In his retirement, he enjoyed chess, ballroom dancing, brisk walks through the woods near his house and tending to his yard. He loved to tinker, be it under a car or over a computer keyboard, rigging up old monitors and operating systems to serve his own purposes.

Rolland is survived by his daughters, Susan Ritter, of Minneapolis, and Karen (Derek Wolman) Ritter, of Brooklyn, NY; son, Daniel Ritter, of St. Paul; grandson, Jordan Wolman, of Brooklyn; first cousin, Frederick Ritter, of Tilden, Nebraska; and cousin, Sheryl Wingate, of Tilden.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Madge Ritter; his parents, William and Margaretha Ritter; and his brother, Harold Ritter.

Funeral Service will be Saturday, October 8 at 11:00 AM with visitation one hour prior at Parkway United Church of Christ, 3120 Washburn Ave N, Mpls. Entombment at Sunset Cemetery.

Arrangements under the direction of Sunset Funeral Chapel, Minneapolis, MN.