Dr. Ronald Barrett

Dr. Ronald Wilde Barrett died on December 26, 2025 in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. Ron was born in Attleboro, Massachusetts in 1936 and lived some of his early years in Florida. He graduated from Plainville High School (Mass.) in 1954. He served in the Air Force, where he was stationed at Holloman Air Force Base, then enrolled in college at Gustavus Adolphus in St. Peter, Minnesota, where he graduated summa cum laude in 1962. In 1970 he received his PhD in wildlife management from the University of Minnesota and did a postdoc in animal behavior at the Bell Museum. While doing a summer biology program at Itasca State Park in 1965, he met the love of his life, Judith McBeath. They married 6 weeks later and recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. In 1970 Ron and Judy moved to Fond du Lac, where Ron taught biology at the University of Wisconsin - Fond du Lac and Marian College for decades. Ron loved living on the Ledge. He was passionate about native plants, trees and birds, adored his Samoyed dogs, loved to swim and cross-country ski, and read widely. Ron is survived by his wife, Judith; stepsister, Audrey Cottrell, as well as many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Services are in the care of Uecker-Witt Funeral Home, 524 North Park Avenue, Fond du Lac, WI, 54935. Additional information and guestbook can be found at ueckerwitt.com