WE miss you uncle Ron!
Maddy us living and working in Sausalito and we often search out Dionasys
(Spelling)
May your life in graven be as accomplished as your life in earth. ❤️❤️❤️

I met Ron as part of the North Bay Angels in 1998. I was a young entrepreneur trying to learn how to do things better to help our family business and start my career. I volunteered on the program committee with Ron. Since we both had a long drive to the meetings, we would carpool for the 1 hour drive. This gave a us time to talk and I learned a huge amount from him. Ron had been through so many various investments with good and bad returns. His perspective was fantastic for me.

A dozen years later I'm proud to say Ron lead the first round of my next company and participated in several other rounds as we grew. I'm sad to not to be able to invite him to a closing dinner and thank him for watching me development and believing in me over all those years.

I met Ron almost 15 years ago, introduced by my dear friend and colleague Lynn Lohr. I was immediately impressed by his business acumen and entrepreneurial spirit, something that I’ve always admired in Ron. I also discovered in Ron a deep sympathy for the poor, especially the hardworking $2/day farmers and workers around the world who struggle to put food on the table and keep their kids in school. I immediately felt that Ron was a kindred spirit. That was the beginning of our friendship and collaboration.

Ron understood business and markets. What Ron loved about the Fair Trade movement was the opportunity to harness the power of markets to help families on a journey out of poverty. Ever hungry to learn, we traveled together to Nicaragua in 2009 to visit small coffee farmers and see the impact of our work. Ron’s curiosity, humility and generous spirit were shining bright on that trip. He was eager to shake hands with the farmers, share a simple homecooked meal, hear their stories, and learn about their struggles, hopes and dreams. I believe that trip was transformative for Ron in many ways. It certainly impacted his philanthropic interests: afterward and over the years, Ron became one of the most generous supporters in the history of the Fair Trade movement.

A few years later, Ron, Cole and I traveled to Costa Rica, this time to visit a Fair Trade organic pineapple farm. The workers there had organized themselves to build a learning center that offered classes in adult literacy, computer skills and English, as well as daycare and elderly care. Ron was blown away by the vision of these landless farmworkers and their commitment to education as the path for improving their families’ lives. After returning home, Ron urged us to innovate our model to be more inclusive of farm and factory workers, a program that we developed with Ron’s direct support over the last 8 years to the benefit of hundreds of thousands of workers. These results are a true testament to Ron’s visionary outlook.

Truly, Ron leaves behind an extraordinary legacy of strategic philanthropy. He has helped make life better and more hopeful for so many people around the world. We have just conferred upon Ron the Fair Trade Hero award, our highest honor for those who have gone above and beyond in support of farmers, workers and their families.

I looked up to Ron as a source of wise counsel. His keen mind, humility, generosity and compassion were such an inspiration to me. I feel truly blessed to have shared adventures, friendship and service to a higher cause with Ron. I will carry his torch, always.

   I met Ron in the late 1970’s when I was first dating his niece, Susan.        
   We started our “Rankin Wine Tasting Weekend” events during the early 1980’s and continued that tradition for a number of years. Ron, with his extensive wine knowledge, became a cornerstone of those times. Saturday was the wine tasting and BBQ; Sunday was the much needed recovery day at the Russian River. These were the best of times and will never be forgotten. 
   Ron was a businessman. He lived for “the art of the deal.” I appreciated his savvy and admired his philanthropic approach to giving humankind “a hand up, not a hand out.” He will be greatly missed. 
                   Fair winds, Ron.
                       Richard.

I wish I could express my gratitude with words, but words are hardly enough. He has enriched my life in so many ways.
He opened my eyes, and palate, to how good wine really could be with my introduction to J. Lohr wines 45 years ago. He also facilitated my foray into making my own wine, by allowing me to harvest, crush, ferment, and bottle my first wine. (And thank you Jerry)
He was one of 2 people who believed in me when everyone else thought I was crazy and foolish, and funded my startup cabinet shop. His 'payoff' was a labor of love for me, being able to create cabinets and furniture for his houseboat. I loved spending time there. He was my consultant when I wanted to expand, and again he was positive in his affirmations. His encouragement was always there for me. His belief in me still resonates.
Ron also introduced me to sailing. Something I had watched from afar, never quite knowing how and where to get started when growing up. Cyrene was a learning experience like no other. Ron was always generous with his time. Eventually he allowed me to take the family out for a sail in his absence. He seemed pleased that we enjoyed Cyrene so much. I was hooked, and it has been a life long passion ever since.
While the above may seem somewhat mundane on the surface, each one has had a broad-reaching and profound effect on my life, and my view of it. The experiences I have shared with family and friends are memories that will last my lifetime. There is just no way to describe how much appreciation I have for the positive and supportive influences he has had in my life.
Ron, thank you for everything.

Ron was such a wonderful Uncle ! I’ve got so many memories of him..laying on the floor in a sunbeam to take a nap and eating the last of the salad right from the bowl as my sister Ginny mentioned.. When we were a little older, but not old enough to drive yet..he’d let us practice driving in a parking lot somewhere..super fun and something my parents would never do ! When I came North to go to College my Grandfather ( Ron’s Dad) asked him to keep an eye on me . He’d come North to the Dorms and take me out to a meal and check in regularly. He believed in me ! I remember us shopping in San Francisco where he bought me my first Down Jacket ..and when he heard I was interested in learning to Ski helped me out with Ski Boots. In College from time to time he’d loan his Convertible Car to myself and friends to take a little road trip . Sailing, Salami, learning about Wine are other fond memories. We hosted an annual Rankin Weekend at our home for years and Ron was always there adding to the fun and merriment . We always enjoyed going to his Houseboat for a visit..rowing in the Bay, eating good food and Wine ! In times of trouble I could lean on Ron to have wise words and understanding. Life gets busy , things change. I’m so sad that Ron tripped and fell.. I’m so sorry I can’t call him and have a nice chat . I’ve enjoyed getting to know him a bit better through the beautiful Tributes from his friend, neighbors and colleagues. I miss you Uncle Ron . Thank you SO much for everything ♥️

I had the pleasure of seeing Ron on several occasions of Rankin family gatherings. He always remembered me and always spoke with me. I only wish I knew him better. Ginny and Ron's family and friends, what a wonderful photo tribute you have shared with all of us. Ron was truly blessed to be surrounded by such love and laughter!

Ron, I will always remember how welcoming you were to me and made me feel like a member of the family. We will all miss you.

Ron was an amazing, generous and kind man. He had a keen eye for good solutions for helping people and he understood the long game. Ron was incredibly thoughtful, principled and compassionate. From all of your friends at Landesa - thank you for living a wonderful life!  

Uncle Ron was a kind, fun, easy going man. Very serious on the other hand. So thoughtful and giving. He always had a positive word to say and wanted to teach us all he could. His generosity goes beyond words. His level of knowledge was unlike many others. He shared his wealth of knowledge in abundance. He never owned a television-he learned through reading. He was a very successful man and his legacy will live on through his many projects that he supported and his philanthropy. Life is short....
Taken too soon ❤️ Love you

I am writing this on behalf of the economists and data researchers working on the Land Policy Initiative at the National Council of Applied Economic Research in New Delhi, India. We were greatly saddened by the news of Ron’s passing away. Ron had chosen to support our work on land and property rights in India in collaboration with Landesa, the US non-profit whose work on land rights Ron greatly admired and supported. Though we were not fortunate enough to start this relationship with Ron in his lifetime, we remain immensely touched by his faith in our work and are inspired to continue the work to improve the security of property rights for hundreds of millions of Indians, particularly women and the poor.

We worked together on RFP and during the most intensive times, we chatted almost every day. Ron was wonderful to work with and very similar to my mom in many ways who has also recently passed, I will miss him a great deal.

You will never be forgotten Ron. We will certainly miss you and the smile that lit up your face. Much love.

I first met Ron 50 years ago when I was a teenager working in my brother's office for the summer. Even then, I could tell what a gentleman Ron was and what a good friend he was to my brother. Years later when my husband and I moved to the floating home community it was Ron who greeted us the first day with a tour in his "whaler," with sandwiches, with suggestions. Over the years, he took a great interest in Fair Trade, was engaged in how it helps workers. Ron was a blessing to family, to friends, to the farmers of the world. So glad I could have one last lunch with him on the back deck of my houseboat this November. His spirit and generosity live on. Thank you, Ron.

Ron was our neighbor for years and we always enjoyed having him next door. For us, most impressive was Ron’s deep concern for those globally most in need of help. He took the task of helping the poorest of the poor very seriously, and deeply researched organizations before deciding whether to support them. For that reason, we were honored when Ron decided to support our organization in Cambodia. But Ron’s concern for others extended beyond the systemic to the individual, and we always appreciated his concern for us individually on many levels. We will miss him.
-Neil & Annette

I miss you Uncle Ron. Please know that I am carrying you in my heart, thoughts, and stories. I will never forget all that you did for me. Love, Elizabeth 

I met Ron in 1997 when we both served on the UCSF Medical School Auxiliary Board. Ron attended our first meeting of the North Bay Angels in June 1998 and invested in our first company TriVascular throughout many rounds receiving a respectable return upon exit. Ron served for over 20 years on our Program Committee reviewing potential investment opportunities for our group. He was always very professional, inquisitive and thorough in his review of these companies. I will miss his support and dedication to our group but most of all I will miss his ever-present SMILE !!!

I miss you, Ron. I can't believe you are gone, but I feel so lucky to have had you in my life. Thanks so much for everything. Love, Cole