Ralph Thiers Obituary

Ralph Edward Thiers

May 6, 1922 - September 27, 2024

Seattle, Washington - Ralph Edward Thiers, 102, died September 27, 2024, in Seattle, Washington.

Born May 6, 1922, in Toronto, Canada, and naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1953, Ralph was the son of Edith and Frank Thiers and brother to Frank, Don, and Dorothy.

Ralph had a long and successful career in clinical chemistry, receiving his PhD from the University of Toronto. He was a chemistry professor at Harvard and Duke Universities, ran labs at Peter Bent Brigham and Duke University Hospitals, and led commercial research at BioScience in Los Angeles, California. Later in his career he was an independent consultant and leader in clinical laboratory computerization across the U.S.

Ralph loved his family. He loved travelling with them and being active with them in outdoor sports like sailing and skiing.

Ralph loved playing music. He and his wife Judy spent innumerable happy evenings together playing duets in the living room, she on piano and he on clarinet. They also played together in various Olympia-area community bands.

Ralph loved telling stories. He entertained many, many people with tales from his life, such as the pranks he played as a university student, his experiences during the great depression, and perhaps the story most beloved by his grandchildren, the time he smuggled a small bit of Ruthenium out of the Chalk River Project to use in his PhD work.

Finally, Ralph loved projects and was a true handyman. In the 1950s he entirely rewired the family cabin on their beloved Rand Farm near Mt. Sunapee in New Hampshire and more recently spent hours on projects around the family home on South Puget Sound. Most importantly he graciously passed on his skills to all who worked with him.

Ralph is survived by his daughter Virginia (Philip) and son Timothy (Karen) and his grandchildren David, Jeffrey, Michael, and Katie. He was preceded in death by his spouses Elizabeth and Judith, his son Michael, and longtime family friend Katherine Oglesby.

Ralph was a big presence in so many people's lives very smart, strong willed, and very kind. He was much loved and will be greatly missed.