Obituary of Ralph D. Painter

Ralph D. Painter, 98, passed away January 19, 2014 at Stow-Glen Retirement Center in Stow, OH, where he lived for the past 8 years since moving back to Ohio from Florida following the death of his wife, Beatrice.  With the death of his wife of 68 years, he wanted to be near his only child, Carole Kane, a longtime Kent resident and her family. He was born August 29, 1915 in Norton Center, OH.  His parents were Lewis M. and Tressa Painter and his two older brothers were Harold and Howard.  He grew up, worked and raised a family in Barberton, OH  until moving with his wife to Lake Placid, FL where they spent 35 years in retirement. As a young man he was a well-known baseball pitcher, having tryouts with the Cleveland Indians and St. Louis Cardinals.  He played on area teams, umpired Little League, coached church teams and was a huge sports fan, attending OSU football games for 50 years. He was a lay leader, building fund chairman and active member at Johnson Methodist Church.  He and his wife owned Painter Hardware for 25 years on the west side of Barberton in an area called Johnson’s Corners.  The 1928 PAINTER brick building on Wooster Rd.W. is still in use today.  His classes at Hammel Business College in Akron served him well.  In the 1950s and 1960s he was appointed Barberton City Safety Director and later Barberton City Service Director.  He later was a realtor for 10 years with Maloney Co.  He was well respected, honest, likable, dependable and active in his community. He and his wife traveled extensively throughout the entire USA including Alaska and Canada, often in their motor home.  They also visited Great Britain, Europe, Mexico and on their 50th anniversary took a trip to Russia. His family includes daughter Carol Kane;  granddaughter Hilary Kane and husband Paul Onuska of Mantua, OH; great-grandsons Nicholas and Jonah Onuska, and grandson Timothy Kane and wife Kate Peake of South Euclid, OH. Special thanks to Hospice of Visiting Nurse Service, “Devoted Companions” of Kent, and Dr. Daniel Sullivan of Cleveland Clinic for their loving care. Cremation has taken place and a memorial service will be held Sat., Feb. 1st at 2:00 in the BIRCH HALL Community Room of Stow-Glen Retirement Center, 4285 Kent Rd., Stow, OH.  Pastor Kim Barnett will officiate.  A private family burial at a later date will be at Greenlawn Cemetery in Akron, OH. In lieu of flowers, a donation in his memory can be made to:  Kent Roosevelt Football Boosters, c/o Coach John Nemec, Theodore Roosevelt High School, 1400 N. Mantua St., Kent, OH  44240 or Pathway to Independence , a safe residential living facility for high functioning young adults with mental disabilities (www.path2ind.org) at P.T.I., Attention: Chris Webb, Birch Hall, Apt. 442, 4285 Kent Rd., Stow, OH  44224.