Ronald W. Hardt

Ronald W. Hardt, age 70, of Othello, passed away June 8, 2015 at Trios Southridge Hospital in Kennewick, surrounded by his loved ones.

Ron was born in Spokane, Washington on July 24, 1944 to Alvin and Ruth Hardt. Until age eight he lived on a farm west of Odessa with his parents, two younger sisters and his favorite dog. The family moved to Odessa where he graduated from Odessa High School in 1962 and went on to earn a bachelor's degree from Eastern Washington University.

Ron married Lena Lentz of Marlin in 1967, and they made their home in Othello. Together they had two children and remained good friends after their divorce in 1987.

One of Ron's greatest joys and accomplishments was teaching. He was a sixth-grade teacher at Scootney Springs Elementary School for 30 years. He was involved with the start of the Camp Wooten program for sixth-graders, which he later headed for many years. During his first years teaching he worked during summer vacations at the city pool and taught summer school. He coached basketball at McFarland Middle School and Othello High School, and golf at Othello High School.

Ron was an avid golfer and a member of the Othello Golf Club. He was proud to be an active member of the Lion's Club for 28 years. He was known for being one of the top sellers of the Lions scholarship calendars and organized it for many years. He was president for five terms, vice-president for five terms and served as Lion Tamer for 10 terms. He was also a member of the Eagles Lodge for several years.

Ron enjoyed trips to the Tri-Cities to go dancing and socializing with friends. In Othello you might have seen Ron at the golf club or the Eagles Lodge where he could usually be found at 4 p.m. having his standard diet drink. He could be found every day visiting his daughter Nicole. He especially enjoyed the holidays shared with his family, where there was always much laughter, joking and playing an assortment of games.

Ron battled with diabetes and Myotonic Muscular Dystrophy (MMD) which compromised his ability to do the things he loved during the past couple of years. But he continued to enjoy his times with his family and friends. Ron will be dearly missed.

He was survived by his children Shawn Hardt (Danielle Evans) and Nicole (Estevan) Garza and his grandson Jesse Garza (Kim Alvarez), all of of Othello; his siblings Myrna Thomas of Hartline and Jeff Hardt of Spokane and several nieces and nephews.

Ron was preceded in death by his parents Alvin and Ruth Hardt, two sisters; Janet Hayes, and Cheryl Logue, and grandson Nathan Garza.

Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m., June 24, 2015, at Stevens Funeral Chapel in Othello. In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to Myotonic Muscular Dystrophy in memory of Ron. To leave an online condolence to the family, please visit our website at http://www.stevensfc.com.