Obituary of Ronald Ensley

Melbourne Ronald Ware Ensley, 79, passed away on Wednesday, November 21, 2018. Born in Lakeland, FL, Ron was a graduate of Lakeland High School (’57), he served as a Midshipman at the US Naval Academy for 2 1/2 years, graduated with a BSEE from University of Florida (’61), and began his Engineering career in 1962 at Boeing, Seattle, WA; Control Data, Minneapolis, MN (1964) and SACLANT, Norfolk, VA (1965). Returning to Florida in 1967, Ron accepted a position with Radiation (now Harris Corporation) and was employed there for 30 years. In his last position at Harris (Air Traffic Control) Program Manager, Ron did a lot of overseas travel to Russia, Portugal, England, Kuwait, Bahrain and Egypt—which gave him a special appreciation for travel. As a boy Ron enjoyed annual summer trips with his parents to Western North Carolina (Sylva) where he spent time with favorite aunts and uncles in the Appalachian Great Smoky Mountains. His father taught him and his brother an appreciation for genealogy and they spent many hours with uncles, cousins and other relatives who shared their interest in family history. Ron was a member of Jackson County Genealogical Society in Sylva, NC; he loved all kinds of music (from classical to country), books, dogs, cats and had the best sense of humor. He was well known for his antics with his cousin Larry (throwing cow pies and scaring Aunt Lucy). A loving husband and father, his surviving family includes his wife of 40 years, Sheila Ensley of Melbourne, FL; daughters, Laura Stanton (Bill) of Fort Pierce, FL, Karen Jarratt of Nashville, TN, Cheri Lawson (Jon) of Burlington, NC and their mother Ihla Sloman of Vero Beach, FL; stepson Jerry King (Wendy) of Palm Bay, FL; niece, Ruth Rosene (Todd) of Mission Viejo, CA; grandchildren: Ihla, Sean, Liam, Colin, Meg, Rhett, Reid, Stephenie, Tyler, Carson, Mayce; and great-granddaughter Emma. Services will be Saturday, December 22, at 1:00 pm at Ammen Family Cremation and Funeral Care, 1001 Hickory Street, Melbourne. Donations may be made to Vitas Community Connection, 4450 W. Eau Gallie Blvd. Suite 250 Melbourne, FL 32934