Robert A. "Bob" Ritt
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Robert A. "Bob" Ritt, age 78, of Asbury, passed away peacefully at his home on Sunday, October 17, 2021, while holding the hand of his loving wife. To celebrate Bob's life, family and friends may visit from 9:00 a.m. until 10:30 a.m., on Friday, October 22, 2021, at Church of the Resurrection, 4300 Asbury Road. Family members will share memories at the visitation beginning at 10:00 a.m. A funeral mass will begin at 10:30 a.m., at the Church of the Resurrection, with Rev. Phillip G. Gibbs officiating. Because we love and desire to protect our immunocompromised family and friends, the family requests that all who attend wear a mask and follow social distancing guidelines. A private burial will be held in Resurrection Cemetery at a later date. Behr Funeral Home, 1491 Main Street, is assisting the family.
Bob was born on February 15, 1943, in Dubuque, Iowa, son of Clarence and Evelyn (Klein) Ritt. He was proud of the fact that he resided in Balltown and the Dubuque area his entire life.
At the age of 16, he attended a dance in Balltown, where he met a young woman, Mary Ann Tarkett, who took his breath away. That night he told his buddies that he would marry her one day. And he did. They were married on April 4, 1964, at St. Anthony's Catholic Church in Dubuque.
Bob and Mary Ann were blessed with 57 1/2 years of marriage and 4 children. Bob was a hard worker, who felt honored to provide for his family. He took great pride in his 36 years and 8 days of employment on the crawler line at John Deere Dubuque Works from March 23, 1964 until March 31, 2000, when he began enjoying his well-earned retirement. He also was a proud member of the UAW Local #94.
Bob was very involved with his children's and grandchildren's lives, even coaching their sports teams with great joy for many years. In fact, his family cannot remember him missing a single athletic event, music event, drama event, grandparents' day event, etc. He also used his time and talents to mentor the children in the neighborhood, joining in their games and helping anyone who needed anything. He truly valued the simple things in life. Especially during their retirement years, Bob and Mary Ann were inseparable and could often be found heading out for breakfast, coffee or ice cream, or taking a car ride down by the river or out to Balltown. He greatly enjoyed feeding birds and squirrels and took great pride in having the fattest squirrels in the neighborhood. Bob also took meticulous care of his lawn, with his John Deere riding mower. His kids and grandkids treasure all of the rides they had on "the tractor." Bob saved every penny he saw and amassed a huge collection throughout the years. He also never missed an episode of Gunsmoke and was an avid Yankees and Cubs fan. He was elated when the Cubs won the World Series in 2016; he called it his "once in a lifetime experience." Bob's faith was also an important aspect of his life, as evidenced by his membership with the Church of the Resurrection and the Knights of Columbus. Bob was a loving husband, dad, pepaw, grampy and grandpa and a true role model for his family. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and by all whose lives he touched throughout the years.
Those left to cherish Bob's memory include his loving wife, Mary Ann Ritt, Dubuque, IA; his children, Dr. Ann (Robert) Pelelo, Dubuque, IA, Michele Ritt (John Rademacher), Madison, WI, Bob "Bobby" (Brenda) Ritt, Dubuque, IA and Jim "Jimmer" (Crissy) Ritt, Austin, TX; and his grandchildren, Thomas and Joshua Pelelo, Priya Ritt Rademacher and Josef Ritt Rademacher, Lucy and Lila Ritt, Addison, Annabelle and Alex Ritt; and his sister-in-law, Bev Ritt.
Bob was preceded in death by his parents; and his siblings, Helen (Eldon) Streif, Duane (Carol) Ritt and Dennis (Kitty) Ritt.
The family would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to all of our wonderful family members, friends and neighbors. Your kindness and support throughout the years are appreciated more than you will ever know. Bob's family would also like to thank Dr. Pashtoon Kasi, and all of the medical specialists, who helped Bob throughout his recent cancer journey.
In lieu of flowers, the family will gratefully receive your support through phone calls, greeting cards and memorials in Bob's memory, which may be mailed to Behr Funeral Home, 1491 Main Street, Dubuque, Iowa 52001, Attn. Robert A. Ritt Family.
Online condolences may be left for the family at www.behrfuneralhome.com. People can join in the service virtually at tinyurl.com/RobertARitt.