I am Bruce Baty, Ralph’s younger brother.  I live in Missoula Montana and am 2 years younger than Ralph.  We have one older brother George, who lives in Ohio and is 4 years older than Ralph. I would like to share with you some of our family’s background and how it relates to our/and Ralph’s upbringing.

Ralph was born in Patterson, New Jersey, and our father, Joe, was a research chemist who worked for C.P. Hall Co. in New Jersey.  Our family later moved to Akron, Ohio where dad worked for a rubber tire company.  During this time our dad developed several products that he offered to his company and which they chose not to pursue.  One of the products was an oil based hand cleaner that works very well in dissolving grease, and washes off with water.

After being in Akron for a year or two, our dad decided to go into business for himself and market some of the products that he developed.  He chose to settle in northwestern Ohio, near Toledo, in a small farming community 7 miles from Bowling Green, Ohio.  He chose this area because of its proximity to a state university (Bowling Green State University) and also because it was in the center of an industrial part of the country. The plan was for us kids to be able to attend a university inexpensively and also be in a location for easy marketing of industrial products.  Education was a high priority on the list.  There was never a question as to whether we would attend university.  

The town we grew up in was Weston, Ohio.  It had a population of about 1000 people.  At first our company was located in the basement of our house and in the large attached work space adjacent to the house.  The building was a former mortuary. 

We (all three brothers) started working at an early age.  A story that was passed around the family about Ralph’s early work experience was that at the age of 2, Ralph wanted to help out but it was difficult to find things he could do.  But when dad was filling gallon jugs with hand cleaner, one of the steps was to put a cap on the jug.  Ralph would take a cap out of the box and put it on the table for his dad to screw on the jug.  If the box was just the right distance away, Ralph could pick up a cap, carry it to the table, drop it off and go back and get another cap in the time it took to fill one jug.  Well, as you know, little Ralphie was pretty smart cookie, and it didn’t take too long for him to figure out he could actually carry a cap in each hand.  Our parents had to move the box.    

We started working at a very early age and have a very good work ethic because of it.  I remember making 15 cents an hour.  Things were different then, penny candy was actually, well, a penny and full size candy bars were 5 cents.

The company gradually grew and some factory buildings were built on the outskirts of town, several hundred yards from our house.  Because the hand cleaner was an oil based product, it had no rival in the cement industry.  The company eventually sold our hand cleaner to about 90% of the cement, gypsum, and lime plants in the United States. To service these cement plants, once a year or so, our company would send a representative to as many plants as possible.  The mode of transport was a Chevrolet station wagon with a trailer in tow carrying cases of hand cleaner. 

As we children got older, the annual company service trip became a family summer vacation and business trip combined.   My father had 8 siblings scattered around the country and with a little planning we could visit a fair share of them on one of these “business trips”.  We knew all of our cousins by the time we were 14.  Many of the trips came west, often to the southwest, but sometimes to the northwest.  Those trips are part of the reason I live in Montana and probably why Ralph lived in San Diego.  The trips were fantastically educational; we visited tons of national parks and saw lots of the country at an early age.  Our classmates in Weston were often jealous of us when school started up in the Fall.  We had so many stories to tell. 

Through the company, we experienced many different types of work situations.  We learned to think for ourselves, be self-sufficient, and to understand the value of money.  By working weekends and in summers, we were able to save enough money to pay for our total college expenses.  We learned that good honest work was its own reward.  We learned that work was a priority.  Often during dinner we would hear the freight truck downshifting as it turned into Weston, ½ mile from our house.  The freight driver knew he could get his last pick-up of the day at our plant even if he was running a little late. After turning onto Oak Street, he would stop in front of our house.  One of the boys would jump up from the dinner table, hop in the cab, go down to the plant and the load the orders onto his truck.  The driver would drop us off to finish dinner on his way out of town. 

As kids we never had an allowance like our friends seemed to have.  We each had household chores, but we were never paid for them, they were just expected to be done.  Our source of income was always working at the family business, and we usually saved most of what we earned.  There were not a lot of things to buy in Weston, Ohio. 

I grew up thinking our family was “middle class”.  We always had the things we needed, but little else.  There were years that the company struggled, but we got by okay, and there was always a Christmas.  We would eat out as a family about once a year to celebrate a special event, and if a sales record was broken, we had steak for dinner. It wasn’t until I got to college that I realized what middle class was really like, and it wasn’t us.

For the most part, life was good. 

Peace, Bruce Baty 

This was presented at Ralph’s memorial service on July 19, 2014.

Ralph was a scientist and a humanist, and he believed in keeping our brains agile and active through continuous lifetime learning.  

He was a voracious reader of non-fiction as well as fiction. He played many kinds of games, from puzzles and board games to duplicate bridge, and in many formats. (He was recently playing chess with grandson Trae by text message, for example.  In the old days before computers and cell phones, he played games with people from all over, through the US mail system.)  He loved learning new games and teaching new games to others. He held full season tickets at North Coast Rep and The Old Globe for many years.  He regularly attended the Geoffrey B Graham lecture series at Scripps Institute of Oceanography (Aquarium) and went to the zoo and the Wild Animal Park - with and without the grandchildren! - for special tours and events. He listened to NPR daily.

I am sure he would be honored by any gift that was made to honor his memory, but may we suggest one of the following, if you are so inclined:

In lieu of flowers, gifts may be made to 

The American Contract Bridge League Educational Foundation, https://npo.justgive.org/nonprofits/donate.jsp?ein=58-1733600

Research projects at Scripps Institute of Oceanography, the project of your choice.  Ralph was expecially interested in Global Change research: https://scripps.ucsd.edu/giving/support-research

The San Diego Zoo in memory of Ralph Baty, San Diego Zoo, P.O. Box 120551, San Diego, CA 92112 or online at http://www.sandiegozoo.org/donate/

Local public radio KPBS: http://www.kpbs.org/



 

Ralph was an amazing man, he loved his family and he loved his games, and he loved taking Juli places where she could find inspiration for her art.  He had an eventful last few months.  In March, 2014, he was tournement chair for the San Diego Unit 539 Spring Sectional (duplicate bridge) tournement.  As usual, he made his five batches of chocolate chip cookies (how many cookies was that, exactly? 517, he posted once on Facebook; 27 dozen for the tournement, and a few dozen more for games nights - oh, and a few for himself.) 

Shortly after the tournement, we laft on a road trip to to Oregon to celebrate his great-granddaughter's 2nd birthday. On the way, we visited with his son Gaby and his family in the Bay area.  We made a day trip to San Francisco to visit with Juli's brother Ken, visit the DeYoung museum, and stroll through the botanical gardens. Evenings, we enjoyed games with his granddaughters.

In Oregon, his great-grandaughter's birthday provided opportunities to enjoy granddaughter Khrystalle and her two year old, to see her new home, and to play some games with Gary when he got home from work each night. Photos of Ralph with L in the park where the party was held tell volumes about how attentive and loving Ralph was with the little ones in his life. 

Driving home, we went by way of the Eastern Sierras, an excuse to visit Tavis, Juli's son, and see some mountains in the springtime around Bishop. Tavis took us on several hikes, one of them to a magical place of petroglyphs, high atop a volcanic moraine. Tavis and his love, Lauren, teased us with "it's really special" and "it's a surprise" and "we think you'll really like it."  We did really like it.  Photos of Ralph on the trail give you an idea of how high we hiked and how rough the terrain was in places,

Back in San Diego, Ralph started coughing. He had had a slight cough for quite a while which was attributed to a blood pressure medication.  This cough was somehow different.  We went to a couple of plays in April, a favorite passtime, and he was worried about disturbing the other theater goers with his cough. We went to First Saturday Games at Barbara's and  Phoenix Games on second Saturday.  He conducted his regular Tuesday night duplicate bridge game in his home, and also his regular Wednesday night bridge discussion group. He played duplicate with teams or partners most Thursdays.  

He filled up his "dance card" with games during the Regional bridge tournement concluding on Easter Sunday.  One of the games he was particularly excited about was a new variety of partnership game where the partnerships are grouped to compete with a small number of teams whose combined master point total were close to each other. He played with Juli and a couple from the Wednesday bridge discussion group.  He loved to find ways to encourage people to take their game to a new level. We had a wonderful day and came in first. He ws so proud of us! 

Then it was time to get ready for Artwalk, an annual street festival in San Diego.  Ralph helped Juli to mat and frame work for the booth, and then helped to set up and tear down the booth each day.

In May, we went to Barbara's games on first Saturday.  Juli had an unexpected opportunity on the second weekend in May to have a booth at the Grand Opening of Waterfront Park.  Ralph felt tired that weekend, and felt really bad that he did not have the energy to help set up the booth.  He also did not have energy to go to Phoenix games, so he had Theresa stop by to pick up the cookies he had saved for that night. By now he was coughing so much during the night that he was not getting enough sleep.  He was losing weight. He began to run a fever, and so went to the doctor for his cough. The doctor diagnosed pneumonia, and put him on antibiotics. 

One of our enjoyable ways to spend evenings was that Ralph would read aloud and I would knit.  Those last few weeks at home, we watched more TV and read less. Ralph has cooked our dinners for years, but now he was tired and I either picked up takeout or cooked for us. He really did not want me to cook or clean up the kitchen, but he was just so very tired, he had to let me.  He still had his Tuesday bridge game, but the first Tuesday in June, he set up the game, but he himself rested on the couch rather than play.  Most of May, our Wednesday group did not meet because our "regulars" were traveling. When the pneumonia did not clear up with antibiotics, the doctor referred him to a pulmonologist.  He mentioned his concern that it could be cancer, and wanted Ralph to get in to see the pulmonologist quickly.

First weekend in June was my birthday.  Ralph usually took me to a good steakhouse for dinner, and showered me with clever and thoughtful gifts - he was a man who planned for months in advance for special occasions for all of his loved ones and gave a lot of thought to what would be a perfect gift for that person at that time.  By now he was spending most of the day on the couch.  He was an avid reader, but wasn't even interested in reading anymore. He had one clever gift ordered over the internet, and was apologetic that he hadn't found more. He insisted that we drink tea that night.  I thought it was an attempt to soothe the cough.  When tea was ready, he gave me the gift - it was magic mugs, black when cool, personalized with photos that appear when filled with hot liquid - one with pictures of himself, and one with pictures of my art.

When dinner was finished, he announced that we were going to Barbara's games, just for a few minutes.  I refused to let him go. I was sure he wasn't contagious but he was so exhausted, I didn't think it was a good idea. We spent a quiet evening at home watching Netflix and reading an Arthur C Clark novel.

On Monday when I took him to the pulmonologist, the doctor immediately hospitalized him in ICU. From the vigorous man who had played with his great granddaughter and hiked in the mountains in March, he walked into the doctors office in slippers, slouched a bit, in kind of a slow shuffle.  He had lost 35 pounds since the trip. 

The doctor thought it would be 5-7 days hospitalization on IV antibiotics to clear up the pneumonia. Ralph and i talked about what I could do for him to take care of things while he was in hospital.  Once he was settled in ICU, I left to go to his home and find the paperwork he had requested, and returned to the hospital.  During the time I was gone, he had gone into a breathing crisis and had to be intubated.

On Friday the 13th, we learned that it was lung cancer.  Because Ralph was intubated and unable to talk, the doctor wanted to wait until he was off the respirator to tell him of the diagnosis.  He also needed to be off the respirator in order to do a PET scan to determine the stage of the cancer, and a prognosis. We still thought that pneumonia was a factor, but none of the cultures were coming back positive.  Ralph was extubated several times but fluid was accumulating outside the lung as well as inside the lung, and he would need the respirator again.  The PET scan results showed stage IV lung cancer.  For a couple of days, the doctors thought there might be a way to get him strong enough to recieve a chemo treatment to stop the fluid accumulation, but his lungs deteriorated too rapidly. 

Family gathered to surround him with a sacred circle of peace and love, and to say goodbye.  He left us on June 25 at 4:41 PM.  He will be deeply missed by so many who knew him. We love you, Ralph. 

Ralph Farrand Baty, 70, of San Diego, died Wednesday, June 25, 2014 at Scripps Memorial Hospital after a brief battle with lung cancer. He was surrounded by his loving family and his long-time partner, Juli.

Ralph was born in New Jersey to Joe and Ann Baty and grew up in Weston Ohio with his brothers George and Bruce.  He attended Otsego High School where he was on the track team and lettered in both football and basketball. Blind in one eye from birth, the basketball letter was probably awarded for keeping the teams statistics! He was a member of the National Honor Society, the Wood County Amateur Radio Club and was an Eagle Scout.  Ralph completed his undergraduate studies at Bowling Green State University (BGSU), and two Masters of Science degrees from Michigan State University, with additional advanced studies at BGSU.

Early in his career, physicists were not in high demand in the US, so Ralph taught math and physics, first in the German public schools, and later in the U.S.  He had a long career in the defense industry as a computer scientist and senior security analyst.  He worked all over the country and in Europe, did a gravity research project on a Liberty Ship, and finally worked for SAIC in San Diego where he retired.

Ralph was an avid games player all of his life.  He was a member of the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) and was a Silver Life Master, playing duplicate bridge several times a week with a variety of bridge partners and teams. Even so, his motto was “The first rule of bridge is to have fun!” He held a weekly non-sanctioned duplicate bridge game in his home for over 25 years. Initially formed to teach one friend how to play the game, it developed into a friendly competition among a large group of up to 5 tables (20 players) at a time, where individual standings were tracked quarterly and annually. He served as tournament chair for the local ACBL Unit 539, presenting 2 tournaments and a holiday party and game each year.  

He shared his love of gaming and continuous learning with his friends, family, and even new acquaintances, encouraging them to learn new games. He was a member of several games groups that met in private homes monthly. Ralph was well known for his patience and for making the learning experience more comfortable and fun, regardless of the complexity or simplicity of the game. While he enjoyed winning, he loved to play word games with “friendly rules” – where there is no penalty for a misspelling or for trying a word that was challenged. He felt that reading a definition and talking about a word should be a part of the enjoyment of the game instead of a penalty for a player. Ralph would simplify game rules for young players, or increase the difficulty to heighten the challenge of a simple game such as Boggle. (He frequently played with no timer but had a minimum word size of 6 letters.) He was a member of Mensa, the San Diego Zoological society, the Birch Aquarium, the Natural History Museum, The Reuben H Fleet Science Center, and a season ticket holder of long-standing at the Old Globe and the North Coast Repertory Theaters.  

Family was extremely important to Ralph. He is survived by two sons, Gabriel of Albany CA and Arden of Ankeny, IA, his grandchildren Khrystalle, Trae, Harley, Augusta, and Vivianna, his great-grandchildren Loralei and Alex (due in September), his long-time partner Juli (Julianne) Ricksecker, and his brothers, George Baty of Weston, OH, and Bruce Baty of Missoula, MT.

 He will be greatly missed.