Ronald Earl Zenkner, of Toledo, passed away Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, peacefully at home, after a nine-month battle with cancer. He was born in Centralia, Washington on Aug. 3, 1947, to Earl and Margaret (Tauscher) Zenkner. Ron spent his whole life in Lewis County. He graduated from W.F. West in 1965. Through high school, he worked for a service station in Chehalis, spurring his love for fast cars, including his 1966 Chevelle SS 396. Anyone who knew Ron most likely heard a story or two involving that car. In 1965, he took a job logging for Weyerhaeuser where he suddenly found himself on a surveying crew. Always having a mind for numbers, Ron quickly realized this was the career for him. He, along with his partner Ed Butler, opened Butler & Zenkner Land Surveying in 1982. Ron went into business on his own in 1996, opening R.E. Zenkner & Associates Land Surveying. He couldn’t stand sitting behind a desk or being idle, and that is why he worked in the woods right up until the day he retired. You would have a tough time meeting a surveyor in Washington state that hadn’t heard of him. After retirement, he and his wife Gloria spent their time traveling, remodeling houses and casino hopping. Ron was an avid fisherman, knew every rock in the Cowlitz River and had a special talent for catching steelhead.
He will be lovingly remembered by his children Kelly and Mike Bredeson, Dawn Zenkner, Darin and Beth Zenkner and Patrick Campbell; 10 grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren; his sisters Jackie Hunt and Eleanor Hadaller, and numerous nieces and nephews.
Ron was preceded in death by his wife of 41 years Gloria Zenkner, his step-son Ritchey Seeber, parents Earl Zenkner, Margaret Edwards and Jimmy Edwards, and his granddaughter Kieree A. Seeber
A celebration of life will be held at his home at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022.
