Ronald Melvin Olson, age 77 of Orange Park, FL. lost his battle with liver cancer and went home to be with the Lord on Sept. 12, 2018. He was born on June 21, 1941 in Sparta, WI. Weighing a whopping 10 l/2 lbs. and nearly 24” long which signified he would be tall and he was at 6 ft. 5 inches! He grew up on a dairy farm until about age 11 when he and his family moved to Minneapolis, MN. He graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1959 and prior to that, he signed up and joined the Navy at age 17 (with his parents’ consent). His first duty station was NAS Glenview, IL. He proudly served in the U.S. Navy for almost 23 years retiring as a Senior Chief in July of 1981 at NAS Jacksonville, FL. Ron married Janice Noreen Bursch on April 23, 1960 in Minneapolis. They were married for 58 years. He is survived by his wife, Jan, sons: Scott (Belle) Olson, Michael Olson and daughter Tammy (Daniel) Nunn, all of Orange Park. Grandsons: Scott (Bryan) Olson, Jr., Joshua Clark, Mason Holly and Mitchell Olson. Also survived by one great granddaughter, Aubree Grace Olson. Also by many nieces, nephews, cousins and numerous friends, both in Orange Park and in Sparta, WI. He was preceded in death by his parents, Bob & Leona Olson and 1 brother, Robert (Bob) who passed on Christmas Eve in 2016. Ron loved to fish and also loved construction of any kind. While living in Sparta, for 13 years, he helped supervise and build many Habitat for Humanity homes. Ron was of strong Norwegian heritage, being 100% and proud of it! Two of his “Norwegian” shirts read: “Not only am I perfect, I'm Norwegian!” and the other “The Few, The Proud, The Norwegians!” A celebration of his life will be held at Advent Lutheran Church in Orange Park, FL. with Pastor Jerry Nordsiek officiating, on Monday, Sept. 17th at 11:00 a.m. with visitation 1 hr. prior to service and luncheon following. Burial will be private and will be held at Jacksonville National Cemetery on Tuesday with full military honors. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to: “Wounded Warriors” or K-9 S for Warriors. Po Box 758517 Topeka, KS 66675. 877-832-6997. Arrangements are under the care of HARDAGE-GIDDENS RIVERMEAD FUNERAL HOME 127 Blanding Blvd Orange Park, FL 32073. We encourage you to leave words of comfort at www.hardage-giddensrivermead.com
