Ronald Joseph Vidal

It is with overwhelming sadness to announce that on Friday, February 21, 2025; Heaven received a sweet loving soul home. Ronald “Ronnie” Joseph Vidal, age 87, passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by loved ones in Haymarket, Virginia. After many months in home hospice care, he is finally reunited with his one true love, his wife Gerry whom he affectionately called my Beautiful Baby. He is no longer suffering with any earthly diseases or ailments and is smiling with all his loved ones. Ronnie was born in 1937 in East Falmouth, Massachusetts to Manuel and Elsie Vidal. Manuel was an immigrant from San Miguel, Portugal (Azores). Elise was born and raised in East Falmouth and her family operated a family farm on Cape Cod for many years. Ronnie was raised and brought up with true Portuguese traditions and strong Catholic beliefs, as well as a huge heart filled with love for family that were part of the Vidal family values. Ronnie’s first language was Portuguese and he loved every aspect of his culture. Ronnie had a younger brother Gerald (Jerry) who was two years younger. Ronnie and Jerry were the best of friends and did everything together in their younger years, and that unbreakable bond would continue throughout life. As they became older, they loved to get together and reminisce about the early days. Ronnie was in the Navy when his baby brother, Robert (Bobby) was born. Ronnie adored Bobby and enjoyed buying him many toys and was so proud of him. Ronnie grew up in East Falmouth and Fall River, Massachusetts, as well as Danbury, CT. He and his family moved quite a bit and they finally decided to call Danbury, Connecticut home. After graduating from Danbury High School, Ronnie decided to enlist in the Navy. While he served in the U.S. Navy, he was a photographer and traveled abroad to many ports, including Asia, Europe and Hawaii. He would always enjoy bringing back gifts to his family from different ports, and he was so proud to serve the Country he loved. Ronnie had many passions and hobbies. He loved photography, trains, hunting, fishing, bowling and flying his Cessna Airplane. He began his love for photography at a very young age and held onto that passion throughout his life. He even took several photography jobs and won many awards. He also taught many people photography skills and even developed his own prints at home in Connecticut. Ronnie was also a member of the Connecticut Photography Club, and part of a Barbershop Quartet where he loved to sing. He loved hunting small game and fowl, and even had a pure-bred hunting dog named Trigger. He built model train sets which even included a small town in his basement in New Milford Ct. He and his daughter named it the K&D Railroad (Kimmie and Daddy). He also loved stamp and coin collecting, and also had a rare camera collection as well. Above all, Ronnie was a people pleaser and always wanted people to be happy and he always had a smile on his face that would light up a room. Ronnie met his true love in the late 1960’s. Gerry was the most beautiful woman Ronnie ever saw. They instantly fell in love and married July, 16, 1969 and were happily married for 54 years. Ron and Gerry were made for each other. They adored each other and always remembered to kiss and hug each day no matter how the day went. Many people commented that they always noticed how they held hands and called each other sweet names. When they decided they wanted to have a family, they began the international adoption process and adopted a little girl from South Korea and named her Kimberly in the early 1970’s. Ronnie and Kimmie had a special bond like no other. Ronnie made sure that he introduced Kimberly to Catholic Religion from the very beginning. They went to church together and he taught her the power of prayer and belief of faith. He loved being a devoted husband and father. Ronnie was an oil mechanic with Hoffman Fuel in the early 1970’s where he worked at many locations and with many customers, and even serviced Elizabeth Montgomery’s home (star of Bewitched). When the winters became too much for him, he decided to move his family to Florida, where he began a career with the Hartford insurance company as an accountant. Ironically, his new career would eventually return him to Connecticut where he worked at the headquarters of the Hartford Insurance Company. Ron and Gerry eventually retired to Anderson, South Carolina and where they enjoyed their golden years together. Ronnie and Gerry were smitten with their granddaughter, Brookie. They loved to visit and spend time with her, and together they made so many beautiful memories. Brookie was Ronnie’s new ‘baby girl’ and both Ronnie and Gerry loved her very much. They gave Brookie all they could and cherished her. In the summer of 2021, due to their declining health, Ron and Gerry moved to Virginia to reside with their daughter Kimberly and her family. Ronnie had several strokes and other ailments over the span of 30 years, but none of those ever stopped him from smiling and displaying genuine love for his family. Throughout his journey, Ronnie made friends for life everywhere he went. His smile would light up a room and he gave all that he had. Everyone who met him knew he had a special soul and felt honored to have met him. He had a wonderful sense of humor and just lived to love his family and God. Ronnie is predeceased by his father, Manuel Vidal, his mother Elsie (Oliver)Vidal, baby brother, Robert (Bobby) Vidal and his true love and loving wife, Geraldine (Ryall) Vidal. He is survived by his daughter, Kimberly (Vidal) Barker, his Son-in-love, Robert Barker, granddaughter, Brooke Barker, step-granddaughter, Tina Barker, his brother, Gerald (Jerry) Vidal of Bridgewater, CT. He has several sister-in-laws, and brothers-in-laws and many nieces and nephews and grand nieces and grand nephews and cousins up and down the East Coast of the United States. A private celebration of life event will be held in the early summer of 2025 on Cape Cod, Massachusetts in Ronnie’s memory. His final resting place will be at the Massachusetts National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family of Ronnie is asking that you pray for those who are recovering from strokes and donate to the American Stroke Association https://www.stroke.org/ May God Bless You, Daddy! We love you always!

Ronald Joseph Vidal

May 8, 1937 - February 21, 2025