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F. Ronald Bogolin
January 16, 1934 to May 16, 2023
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F. Ronald Bogolin, 89, died on May 16, 2023 after a brief illness. Ron was born in Cleveland, Ohio on January 16, 1934, one of two children, to Rose (Kovitch) Bogolin and Frank Bogolin.
He attended St. Jerome Catholic Grade School where he was an altar server. He attended Cathedral Latin School and graduated as valedictorian. In 1956, Ron earned his Civil Engineering Degree from Case Institute of Technology.
In 1955 before he graduated, Ron met his wife of 65 years, Sarah Grealis, on a blind date. Sarah had recently moved to Cleveland from Achill, Ireland to work for a family to care for their young sons. In 1957, Ron and Sarah were married at St. Vincent De Paul Catholic Church in Cleveland, Ohio. At this time, Ron was training with Bethlehem Steel Corporation in Bethlehem, PA. In 1958, Ron and Sarah welcomed their first daughter, Mary. In the following years, Ron’s career brought him to Pittsburgh and they welcomed two sons, Ron Patrick and Christopher.
The family lived in Pittsburgh for 28 years and continued to grow, welcoming six more daughters, Rose, Sara, Bridget, Nora, Julia and Barbara and another son, Brian, to make a family of 10 children. Ron was active in their church communities at Our Lady of Loreto and St. Alphonsus Parishes, acting as a lector at Mass, working with the Boy Scouts, participating in the Cursillo movement, and delivering Eucharist to the homebound.
Despite having ten children, Ron always loved to travel with his family–whether nearby to check out a new bridge being constructed or packing up the car for a weeks-long trip to New England and Canada. He always liked to take the scenic route, stop at random historical monuments, and frequently got lost, but it never dampened his spirits. Ron visited many places across the United States, including Alaska, Hawaii, the Grand Canyon, California Missions and many places closer to home. Ron and Sarah often celebrated their wedding anniversary with trips to check out the Fall foliage in Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia. Ron and Sarah also enjoyed travels abroad with visits including, Ireland, UK, Italy, Israel, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Ron’s life was not always easy. His son, Christopher, died in an accident when he was 14 years old after having just graduated from grade school. Ron’s career also had hardships with Bethlehem Steel closing their Leetsdale operations and then Ron’s next position at U.S. Steel being eliminated when hundreds of professional engineers were laid off in 1983. Ron’s job search brought him to West Virginia where he worked the remainder of his career at the Bayer Plant in New Martinsville and his family moved to Wheeling, WV.
Ron and Sarah loved living “on the hill” in Wheeling for 34 years where they enjoyed watching the sunrise over the valley from their kitchen window. Ron loved to work in the yard and spend countless hours on his beloved tractor that friends and neighbors kept running for years past its prime. Ron was also an active member at Corpus Christi Parish, continuing to lector, act as Eucharistic minister, teaching RCIA, singing in the choir, and becoming a member of the Knights of Columbus. After Ron retired, he and Sarah also enjoyed many volunteer activities including helping at hospice care center, Liza’s Place, and he also worked at the desk at Paul VI Retreat Center.
In January 2021, with all of their children having married and living away from Wheeling, Ron and Sarah moved to New Castle, PA to be near their daughter, Rose, and continue their travels to keep track of their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Ron’s generosity, love, and welcoming smile will be missed by his friends and family.
He is survived by his wife Sarah and their children: Mary (H. Michael) Cheung, Ronald (Lynne) Bogolin, Rose (Scott) Stone, Sara (Daniel) Sonnet, Bridget (Jeff) Kwiatkowski, Brian (Lisa) Bogolin, Nora (Dwayne) Smith, Julia (Gabriel) Bogolin, Barbara (Gabriel) Rhoads; 25 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister Barbara “Babs” (Roger) Williams and their children.
Calling hours will be 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Friday, May 19, 2023, in J. Bradley McGonigle Funeral Home and Crematory, Inc., 111 W. Falls St., New Castle.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be 9:30 a.m. Saturday, May 20, 2023, in Holy Spirit Parish, St. Vitus Church, 910 S. Mercer St., New Castle, with Rev. Aaron Kriss, as celebrant. Interment: Resurrection Catholic Cemetery, Coraopolis, PA.
Eternal rest grant unto Ron, O Lord. Let perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
