Ronald Bryan McPherson, 82
Ronald Bryan McPherson, 82, passed away on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
Visitation for family and friends will be held on Friday, March 18, 2022, from 3-5 p.m.at the Lakeview Funeral Home in Sandpoint. Services will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 19, at Regeneration Calvary Chapel, 130 McGhee Road, Kootenai, Idaho, with a reception immediately following the service.
Ron was born on Oct. 23, 1939, in Portland, Oregon, to Gordon and Eleanor McPherson. His father joined the Marine Corps — moving the family to many bases throughout his childhood. The family settled in San Diego where Ron graduated from Mission Bay High School in 1957. College and military service followed. He earned his AA from Ranger College in Texas. In 1959, he joined the Air Force and served in North Africa as a radio ground operator. Honorably discharged in 1963, he took a psych-tech position in Costa Mesa, California. There he met his first wife and started a family, Traci, 1963; Allen, 1966; and Danna, 1970.
During these years he was employed by Orange County in social services advocating for the elderly and children. He earned his bachelor’s degree in from Long Beach State College, and his master’s degree in clinical social work from the University of San Diego in 1970. He was divorced in 1975, and met Gail in 1979. They moved to Running Springs, California with children, Summer Bibbee, Rex Briggs, and Cyrus Smith. The blended family of six kids enjoyed skiing, camping, backpacking, bicycling, and outdoor adventures.
With a love of technology and a look to the future, in 1978 Ron ventured into the new field of computer science. This launched his next career for the state of California as a data programmer, analyst, and IT manager. A lifelong learner, he earned numerous certificates from universities, in a variety of fields and pursued a PHD from University of La Verne, California. In 1990, he began teaching computer data base programing. His part-time teaching at several universities, eventually led to his tenured position at Riverside Community College in Riverside, California, where he taught information systems until 2017. Teaching was his great love. He had already moved to North Idaho in 2013 from the beach community of Los Osos, California. A memory of wanting to be a “cowboy” as a child was reluctantly realized when “Ron’s Red Heart Ranch” was established in 2014.
Ron and Gail bicycled from Canada to Mexico for his 50th birthday, and over the years traveled to several countries to “immerse” and learn Spanish. A grandchild “teen trip” abroad became a tradition, and several accompanied Ron and Gail to a country of their choice. Ron also began his “Dangerous Boys Camp” for his young grandsons, which their families still talk about.
Ron is survived by his wife, Gail of 43 years; children, Traci Scott McPherson, Bryan Allen McPherson, Danna Janelle Parmley, Summer Gail Bibbee, J. Rex Briggs, and Justin Cyrus Smith; grandchildren, Kalah, Cassondra, Kristen, Rachel, (Bibbee) Dakota, (Parmley) Jared, Caleb, (Briggs) Cyrus, Zachariah, Suzanne, Lucas, Kurtis, (Smith) and Great Grandchildren: Justin, Zoey, Alexander, (Heitz), and Chloe and Penelope (Barnett); and a sister, Norine Woodcock, San Diego, California.
Predeceased by his parents; his great-grandson, Seth Bibbee; and a brother, Terry McPherson
In lieu of flowers, donations may be given to International Christian Concern, www.persecution.org/give.
Lakeview Funeral Home in Sandpoint is handling the arrangements. Please visit Ron’s online memorial at www.lakeviewfuneral.com and sign his guest book.