Long-time wheeler Ron Vance passes away
Dayton resident and long-time 4-wheeler Ron Vance earned his wings in the early morning of February 3, 2019. Ron passed away while in hospice care at Renown Medical Center in Reno, NV. Ron’s wife Carole is the vice president of the Nevada Four Wheel Drive Association.
Ron was born to Floyd and Ota Anita Vance on the family ranch in East Biggs, CA. on April 15, 1939. He was the youngest of five children, having two brothers and two sisters, Marvin Vance, George Vance, Arline Voth and Thelma Hinton who all pre-deceased him. Ron served in the Air Force before returning to the area and making his home in Oroville with his wife, Carole and daughter Dawn. He worked on the construction of the Oroville and Bullards Bar Dams before going to work at the State Department of Water Resources. He retired from the State in 1994 where he was a Maintenance Supervisor, working on many projects around Oroville Dam and the salmon spawning channel known as Mo’s Ditch below the fish hatchery in Oroville. After retiring, he and Carole fulfilled their dream of moving to the wide open spaces of Northern Nevada.
Ron was an avid 4-wheeler and outdoor lover. In 1968, he and Carole joined the Ophir Gopher Jeep Club in Oroville, CA where he served as a President, State Delegate and trail master of the club for many years, also serving as a liaison between C4WDA and the Plumas National Forest for many years. Ron was also a member of the Nevada 4WD Association since it was formed in 2013. They were original members of the High Rock Trekkers 4WD Club and participated in the Lassen Applegate Trip the club puts on every summer. He was also a long-time member of the Native Sons of the Golden West, Argonaut Parlor No. 8 in Oroville CA, where he served as President and remained active in the Past Presidents’ Association after he moved to Nevada.
Ron is most remembered for his great smile, laughter and his compassion of others, often taking time to help others find a path and helping them along their way.
Ron is survived by his wife of nearly 56 years, Carole of Dayton, NV, his daughter Dawn Magowan and her husband Kelly Magowan of Henderson NV, a granddaughter, Elizabeth Fish and husband Jason Fish of Sparks, NV and grandson Ron Ward of Reno, NV. Ron also has numerous nieces, nephews and cousins that he cherished.
Final arrangements are being handled by Truckee Meadows Cremation and Burial of Reno, NV. He will be inurned in the Norther Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Fernley, NV on Monday March 11, 2019 at 2:00PM with military honors. A celebration of life and luncheon will be held in Oroville at the Foothill Community Church on Foothill Blvd on Saturday March 9, 2019 beginning at 11:30AM to honor this loving husband and dedicated father and grandfather.