Music-maker, teacher, mourned by many - Press & Sun-Bulletin
Some of his old students may even have pulled out an oboe or a sax and played a few notes of the songs he taught them — such as "My Sharona" or "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" — when they heard that 71-year-old Ron died March 13 after a long battle... Ron didn't come from a long line of music-makers. His dad, Joseph, worked as a meat cutter at Loblaw's, and his mom, Mary, sewed shoes together at the Endicott-Johnson plant in Johnson City. "He didn't speak English until he was 4 and a half years old," said Lynne, his wife of 43 years. He also enjoyed his mom's Slovak foods such as halupky, nut rolls, and kolachky, said Ron's cousin, Kathleen Frickel of Elmira. Born and raised in Johnson City, Ron, an only child, lived first with his parents at his grandparents' home on Rutland Street, and then in other rented facilities in Johnson City. That's the year he also began to play music professionally — although he didn't see much of a connection between those two occurrences. Musician Don Godfrey remembers Ron coming into his and his father's store, Godfrey & Son Music, back in the day. "Ron would come in as a teenager and purchase musical items from us," said Don, who lives in. Source: www.pressconnects.com
