Rodolfo Santa Ana Ramos

Rodolfo (“Rudy”) Santa Ana Ramos, beloved husband, father, grandfather, big brother and friend, passed away prematurely at his home in Bonita Springs, FL on Saturday, August 20, 2016. He was 81 by the calendar, although half that age in spirit. Born on July 14, 1935 in the Philippines, Rudy made his way to Puerto Rico in 1975 and to the United States in 1979, settling in wintry Racine, Wisconsin with his family and making it his home for the next 35 years. Rudy became a true cheese-head. He was an ardent fan of the Packers and Bucks and Brewers; the owner of big, down coats and tasseled winter hats (which he was apt to call “bonnets”) that he wore when shoveling the drive after a snowstorm; a lover of brats and Wisconsin cheese and, especially, kringle from his favorite neighborhood bakery. Many a far-flung friend has received, over the years, packages of pecan or turtle kringle from O&H Bakery care of Rudy at Christmas or for a birthday or just because. Most importantly, Rudy was a Wisconsinite because he made lifelong friends there. He had his poker buddies, his golf buddies, friends through his church (St. Rita’s), his children’s schools, his alma mater (the University of the Philippines) and the wonderful Filipino community in Milwaukee. Rudy made many of his closest friends through S.C. Johnson, his employer for close to thirty years. There has never been a bigger booster of Johnson Wax than Rudy, who wore his company watch and golf shirts with pride and believed that Curel lotion, when applied generously to aching tummies, mosquito-bitten arms or throbbing heads, cured everything. Rudy was a natural charmer. His smile lit up a room and his laughter filled it. He couldn’t help but befriend the people around him—whether it was the waiter handing over his favorite ribs for take-out at O’Dennis or a fellow parent seated next to him at one of his four children’s college graduations. Rudy was a sports fan, a voracious reader (with a preference for Westerns and spy novels and a soft spot for romance novels) and a terrific dancer. He did everything with flair, including mundane tasks like mowing the lawn, when he was wont to stick a cowboy hat on his head and sling a belt around his hips—the better to holster the weed-killer (made by Johnson Wax, of course) that he sprayed liberally about the yard. His children dubbed him, thereafter and forevermore: “Chemical Cowboy”. Rudy’s months hiding in the mountains from the Japanese as a child during World War II gave him a lifelong appreciation for food…or at least, that was his explanation for his enormous love of all things edible. From Rudy his children learned that Frosted Flakes are better with chocolate milk, that fish eyes are the tastiest bits of fish and that nothing beat his wife’s lumpia (in fact, nothing anywhere beat any of his wife’s dishes). But far and away Rudy’s greatest and most abiding love was for his family. He was a loyal son to his parents and a protective kuya to his five younger siblings. He was a loving father to his four children and a doting and fun-loving grandfather to his seven grandkids. He was a huge fan of his three sons-in-law. And he believed that the sun rose and set on his beautiful and beloved wife of 51 years, Elvira. Rudy is survived by Elvira; his son Jonathan; his daughters Guia, Joanne and Joyce, and their husbands, Todd, David and Jonathan; his grandchildren Sophia and Alex; Henry, Annabel and Owen; and Abigail and Elizabeth; his brother Gerry and his sisters, Linda, Elsa and Sesil; and many loving nieces, nephews and extended family. Rudy is preceded in death by his parents, Epifanio and Remedios Ramos, and his brother, Roy. There will be a memorial service for Rudy on Sunday, October 9, 2016 at 4:00 in the afternoon at the Philippine Center in Zablocki Park, 3717 West Howard Avenue, Greenfield, Wisconsin 53221. Please R.S.V.P. to either Linda Ramos (414-423-0955) or joannemramos@gmail.com. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the University of the Philippines Alumni Association of Wisconsin. Donations can be mailed to the UPAAW care of Elsa Ramos Clemente at 5378 Lilac Lane, Greendale, WI 53129.

Rodolfo Santa Ana Ramos

July 14, 1935 - August 20, 2016