Obituaries

Ralph Stewart Patrick, age 73, of Hessel, Michigan, died late Thursday evening, May 25, 2023, at his residence north of Hessel. He was born on February 26, 1950, at War Memorial Hospital in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, to Bruce William and Florence Elizabeth "Betty" (Miller) Patrick.

After graduating high school, Ralph attended Northern Michigan University in Marquette, Michigan, to continue a family tradition and become a teacher like his mother and his grandmother, Rubie "Gaga" Miller whom he often spoke of sentimentally. Ralph was a lifetime member of the Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity. Upon graduating, Ralph briefly worked at Newberry High School in Newberry before finding his true calling in life; being a carpenter. He would proudly tell anybody that he helped build the Tilden Mine, south of Ishpeming, Michigan. He pointed out anything he helped work on—even if just driving by it. He would often recant tales of what it was like working adjacent high steel workers. One story was during the construction of the Cedarville High School gymnasium, having to take on such daring and dangerous tasks as going up and sweeping snow off the steel beams so everyone could get back to work.

Ralph met his wife, Barbara, through a relative of hers. They were married, and had a daughter, Elizabeth Ann Patrick, in 1988. Thereafter, Ralph started working closer to home with his parents at Patrick's Landing Resort in Cedarville, Michigan. As a jack-of-all-trades, Ralph helped both his parents with every facet of the business. It wasn't out of the ordinary for him to help clean the cabins, take the trash to the dump, and make trips to the hardware store & all between applying coats of epoxy to a boat. Yet, he was never too busy to stop and have a friendly chat.

With the spirit of an outdoorsman, Ralph spent ample time hunting and trapping throughout his life. From trapping muskrats on the family dock as a youth to catching bobcats, foxes, and coyotes in his golden years. Plenty of quality time was spent hunting and learning life lessons on Marquette Island with his father and his uncle, John Patrick.

Growing up in the snows channel, he spent as much time on the water as he did in it. He was a great swimmer, enjoyed water skiing, and even took up scuba diving for a time. During the winter, he enjoyed carving duck decoys, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling, and was even a part of an air sledding club when he was a young man. Ralph loved animals, often keeping dogs and horses as they brought him a great sense of fulfillment. His most invaluable hobby was reloading bullets for himself and his friends. Like his father, Ralph kept a garden and found success at cultivating raspberries. Imagine, between all those hobbies, he still had time to be an avid and voracious reader of historical fiction, thanks to his mother for teaching him how to speed-read.

Ralph is survived by his daughter, Elizabeth Ann "Bethann" Patrick of Hessel; ex-wife, Barbara Ann Patrick of Hessel; sister, Margaret "Peggy" Patrick of Florida; cousins, Robert Patrick of Cedarville, and Richard Taylor of Pickford.

Ralph was preceded in death by his father, Bruce William Patrick; his mother, Florence Elizabeth "Betty" (Miller) Patrick, his uncle, John Edward Patrick; his aunt, Jean (Patrick) Taylor; and aunt, Mae (Patrick) Brown.

Galer Funeral Homes & Cremation of Pickford, Michigan, is serving the family. Condolences may be left to the family at www.galerfuneralhomes.com.

Obituary as submitted by family.