Obituary of Ralph Bannister

Ralph Bannister, a devoted husband, father, and grandfather passed away Sunday December 26th, 2021, at the age of 77. He was surrounded by his loving family during his last days. Ralph was born in St. Paul, Minnesota November 21, 1944, to Floyd and Alma Bannister. He attended Central High School. In 1963 just two weeks after graduation he enlisted in the US Navy. After bootcamp and schooling Ralph served 2 years 6 months at the Naval Air Radio Transmitter Facility Grindavik, Iceland In February 1969 he met the love of his life Stephanie Johnson. They were together for 53 years, married for 48 years. Together they raised two sons Kevin and Timothy. Ralph enjoyed a very successful career in hardware engineering. He was a pioneer in Silicon Valley during the seventies, eighties, and nineties. Some of the companies he worked with were Fairchild, Intel, Sun Microsystems, Intel, and Brocade, where he held the title of Director of Engineering. During this time, he also owned a Country Western Bar for a few years. In 2001, after three attempts, Ralph finally retired. During his retirement Ralph’s passions were spending time with his family and travel. He also followed his longtime passion of drawing and art. Ralph studied figure sketch drawing in Paris, France at château argington and in New York City. Ralph continued sketching , drawing, painting, and showcasing his work throughout the rest of his life. Ralph or “Papa Ralph” as his grandchildren lovingly called him was a kind and generous man to all. Those who knew him, knew a “humble man” with a heart for his dearest Stephanie, his children, grandchildren , dogs, and horses alike. In his last years Ralph could be found around at his Bonny Doon mountain property appreciating it’s beauty, with his son Tim. Also, Stephanie and Ralph spent much of their time at the “Apple Valley House”. Ralph is survived by his wife Stephanie, his sons Kevin Bannister, and Timothy Bannister and his wife Sandra. grandchildren Andrew, Cory, Jerrod, Brendan, Alyssa, and great grandchild Tilian.