Ralph Edward Sleeper

Ralph E. Sleeper, Jr, age 100, of Peoria, AZ passed away on September 13, 2026 surrounded by his children. To save us the trouble, he carefully wrote his own obituary 13 years ago. We’ve added a few personal stories to tell you more.

Ralph was born on July 20, 1926 in Minneapolis, Minnesota to Ralph M. Sleeper, Sr and Etta (Herbst) Sleeper. He grew up in Hutchinson and Mankato, Minnesota and graduated from Loyola High School in Mankato as a three sport athlete and state level Golden Glove boxer (never knocked down, he liked to point out).

After high school he enlisted in the Air Force and served in the occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1946. He married Lorraine “Sparky” Haefner in October 1948 and their marriage lasted until her death 60 years later almost to the day.

Their early years said much about their lives together. With a small loan from a farmer he barely knew and learning carpentry as he went, Ralph built a basement house mostly with his own hands. To save money to build the rest of the house and support Sparky and a newborn, he took a correspondence course studying nights and weekends alone after working full time. To become certified he had to take the same two day engineering exam as four year college graduates. He told us the day before he died those days were the hardest of his life.

Incredibly, he passed the exam the first time and became a highway engineer for Watonwan and Blue Earth Counties in Minnesota. Demanding but fair, meticulous but understanding, he earned state recognition for his work and developed a method to overlay deteriorating roads with blacktop rather than replacing them. That innovation has been used ever since by highway departments across the country. He retired in 1987.

Years after Sparky died, Ralph met and married Irene Ringdahl in 2012. She passed away from cancer in 2016.

Family was more important to Ralph than work. With rare exceptions he and Sparky attended every event in their children’s lives … sports, music performance, plays, spelling bees, everything. He patiently taught us and his grandchildren countless sports and games he knew and loved. He believed fiercely in working hard, playing to win, following rules, being gracious in victory, and learning from defeat and disappointment. Those rules applied to everyone. He never let us or his grandchildren win at anything regardless of our ages because we wouldn’t appreciate winning if we hadn’t earned it.

Golf was Ralph's great sporting passion. He loved it so much he convinced Sparky to move to Arizona away from family and friends in Mankato so they could play year round. He never bragged about his game, though he certainly could have. His accomplishments included 14 holes-in-one, championships at three golf clubs, four National Amateur Seniors championships, and more tournament flight and senior-category victories than he could remember. He twice shot

an astonishing 22 strokes below his age (72 at age 94, 74 at age 96), one away from the Guiness world record. Four days before he died he shot a “disappointing” 90.

Ralph was also an accomplished bowler (one pin from a perfect 300) and skilled bridge, poker, chess, ping pong, pool, tennis, and pickleball player. You can find him in the Guiness Book as part of the oldest pickleball player match on record, average age 96, on the Westbrook Village courts. He excelled in whatever activity and game he tried.

Ralph never missed Mass, even when traveling. He never stopped learning. As a young father he read the World Book Encyclopedia cover to cover. He insisted on keeping up with technology so he could share texts, photos and videos, and played chess online daily with multiple opponents around the country at the same time. He even learned to open up emotionally. Despite the German Catholic norms of his generation, Ralph later in life increasingly ended family visits and telephone calls with the words “love ya.” At his family and golf club 100th birthday celebrations two months ago, he choked up when he tried to express his gratitude. He was genuinely interested in others. He remembered names. He greeted people with a strong handshake, a hug, and a warm, full grin.

Late in life Ralph occasionally felt chest pains while golfing. A few months ago he took an emergency nitroglycerin pill and kept playing. When the pressure returned a few holes later he took another one and kept playing. The third time his playing partners convinced him to drive his golf cart home, he took a third, his blood pressure spiked, and he called an ambulance to the emergency room. Two days later, he was back on the golf course!

Ralph is survived by Brad Sleeper (Lynda - Wayzata Mn), Mark Sleeper (Susan - Surprise Az), and Cindy Ehm (Gary - Rio Verde Az), five granddaughters - Joanna Green (Stephen - Duluth Mn), Natalie Sleeper (Woodbury Mn), Allison Collins (Micah – Roseville Mn), and Katie Berlin (Josh) and Marit Pellegrino (Matt) in Atlanta Ga, two step grandsons - Jared (Kari) and Jacob (Anna) Ehm, eight great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his second wife Irene Ringdahl, parents, and sisters Rea Mae Lyons (Mankato) and Darlene Fetter (San Diego). A memorial service will be held on Oct 28 at 10:30am at St. Thomas More Catholic Church, 6180 W Utopia Road, Glendale, AZ 85308 with lunch to follow at the Vistas Recreation Center, 18825 N. Country Club Parkway, Peoria, AZ 85382. There will be no wake or visitation.

Instead of flowers and plants, the family hopes those wishing to honor their dad’s memory will consider donating to charitable causes of their choice in his name.

If you knew Dad, you know he treated everyone the same … with humor, humility, honesty, competitiveness, and that ridiculous, cackling laugh when you protested him beating you at a game. He was respected by all and beloved by many. He often said how lucky he was to live such a long and rewarding life. We think family and friends around him were the lucky ones.