Ralph Clifford Olson

Ralph Clifford Olson died peacefully on December 24, 2024, after a battle with the disease Multiple System Atrophy. He was born on January 30, 1939, to Clifford and Myrtle (Korsmo) Olson in Fargo, ND. He grew up and attended school in Fargo along with his three sisters, Nancy, Shirley, and Mary. As a kid he enjoyed school, sports, and spending summers on his grandparent’s farm near Stanley, ND.

On September 13, 1958, he married Joy Madreen Johnson. They were married for 62 years until Joy’s death in June 2021. They have three children: Kay (Howard) Witherspoon, Barry (Jana) and Todd (Laurie); five grandchildren: Alex (Morgan), Adam, Kyle, Jason, and Hannah and one great granddaughter August and many other beloved family members.

Ralph’s career started at a Pure Oil service station. After high school he worked at Fargo Glass & Paint and O’Brien’s Paint. In February 1967, Benjamin Moore Paint Co. hired him for a sales job in Rochester, NY. In August 1968 he was transferred to Buffalo, NY where he was a top producing salesman for over 10 years. He was promoted to Regional Sales Manager and finally District Sales Manager. Ralph retired from Benjamin Moore in 1993 after 26 years and bought the Lathrop Paint stores in Minneapolis, MN. He eventually sold those stores and then worked for Muralo Paints before retiring.

Ralph and Joy moved eight times because of his job transfers. They lived in: Fargo & Grand Forks, ND; White Bear Lake, MN; Rochester & Buffalo, NY; Cleveland, OH; Houston, TX; Chicago, IL; and Bloomington & Minnetonka, MN.

Ralph enjoyed hunting, fishing, playing golf, and attending sports events. Over the years they traveled the country visiting friends and family and attending baseball, football, and hockey games and NASCAR races. He had an extensive sports memorabilia collection of autographed baseballs, footballs, race cars, and photographs. He attended the MN Twins Fest every year to add to his collection of over 200 baseballs. He also collected stamps from different countries around the world. The collections were displayed in a room they called “The Captain’s Quarters,” and he enjoyed showing them to everyone who visited him.

Family history was important to Ralph, and he kept extensive family history records and photographs including all his grandparent’s immigration records from Norway to the USA. He was very intentional about staying in touch with extended family and he wrote many letters over the years. The trip of a lifetime for Ralph was visiting the family farm in Flisa, Norway where his grandfather Manuel Smorbol Olson had grown up. Later he was thrilled when several family members from Norway visited and he showed them all the places in MN and ND where their relatives had lived.

Over the years he volunteered at the Lutheran churches they attended in different cities and at the V.A. Hospital in Minneapolis, MN for over 12 years.
Ralph especially loved cheering on his grandchildren while attending the different activities they participated in. He was always one of their biggest fans.

He will be buried next to Joy at Springvale Cemetery in Fargo, ND later in 2025.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to:

SEAL Kids
6724 Perimeter Loop Rd STE 314
Dublin, OH 43017

Navy SEAL Foundation
1614 D Street
Virginia Beach, VA 23460