Ronald “Ron” or “Ronny” Lee Sipes passed from this earth peacefully on August 8, 2025. The grim reaper must have snuck up on him because there was too much fight in him otherwise. All who knew him knew he could be ornery or puckish, depending on how the wind was blowing.

He was a voracious reader and scholar, as would be expected from the child of two schoolteachers, and as a young boy he traveled to compete in the National Spelling Bee. Education was always important to him, and he made sure his own children received an education (though he felt the need to test the quality of that education regularly) and worked hard to make sure other children in the community got the extra help that they needed as well.

As a teenager, he got into plenty of trouble, but nothing safe to put in print, even now, though the stories are legend. He attended Oklahoma Panhandle State University as a Pre-Med student before realizing that his true passion was farming. He loved the land and was maniacal about preventing the spread of bindweed.

While at college, he was a member of the rifle team, and this became a second passion – shooting, the Second Amendment, the right of self-defense. One could not meet the man and spend 15 minutes in his company and escape this fact. Within an hour of meeting his future son-in-law, he gifted the near stranger a rifle. Ron Sipes was generous in that respect, always wanting to encourage others in their pursuit of the shooting sports, or the importance of the Second Amendment, or making sure victims of domestic abuse were able to protect themselves. He even taught many 4-Hers in the community to shoot; such was his passion.

He was a pilot and would often talk about aviation. He flew his young family to Florida in the 70’s, but got lost along the way, much to the chagrin of the US military when he landed on a base…uninvited. But every training flight of the bombers and fighters out of Lackland Airforce Base that flew over the farm made him smile.

He would not be satisfied with this accounting of his deeds did it not mention the work he did to write the constitution for the would-be state of West Kansas. For a time, talk focused on part of the state splintering from the whole, and Ron took it upon himself to research and draft a Constitution for the new state. He was proud of this work, though in the end it was simply shelved. He was always civic-minded, speaking on occasion to students in Stanton County about the US Constitution.

Even as a child he was concerned with the matters of the day. A favorite family story has a young Ron asking why everyone was so upset and someone flippantly said, “Go ask Eisenhower.” So, he did: he was a mile down the road on his tricycle before his absence was noted. That’s who he was – he would get answers and hold elected officials accountable.

He will also be remembered as a teller of tales. The man had story after story and shared them far and wide. Some of us got to hear them several times and knew when to anticipate the laugh lines. Somebody upstairs is going to get an ear-full, but at least this will give him a fresh audience.

Ron is survived by his wife, Cora “Corrie” Sipes, his daughter Dallas Sipes Chapman, son-in-law Kenneth, granddaughter London, daughter Summer Sipes, and first wife, Deborah Clarkson, the mother of his children.

He is predeceased by his parents, Glenn and Luvella Sipes, his brother Bob, and his second wife, Nina.

Graveside service will be Saturday, August 16, 2025, at 9:00 AM MST at the Minneapolis Cemetery in Baca County, Colorado with eulogists Dallas Sipes Chapman and Jim Sipes. Directions to the cemetery from Johnson are 27.6 miles west on old Highway 160 to Road 45, four miles south to the junction of County Road 45 and MM. Visitation will be Friday, August 15, 2025, from 6:00 PM until 8:00 PM at Garnand Funeral Home in Johnson. Memorial contributions may be given to the Second Amendment Foundation or the Stanton County Library in care of Garnand Funeral Home, PO Box 715, Johnson, KS 67855. Condolences may be posted at www.garnandfuneralhomes.com.