Ralph Jaeger

Ralph Jaeger, loving husband, devoted father, and committed servant of Jesus, died peacefully on 6 July 2026, surrounded by his children. From solid German Lutheran roots, his life was marked by tremendous self-discipline and dedication that blessed the lives of others.

Ralph was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin on 6 December 1932 to Esther and Albert Jaeger. He was baptized into Christ on December 25, 1932, at St. Paul's Ev. Lutheran Church in Green Bay. His early life on a small farm near Maribel was characterized by plenty of solitude, and he enjoyed playing alone with his dog and using his imagination. Struggling as farmers, and with sister Laverne now part of the family, Ralph's parents moved to Manitowoc in the late 1930s where his father found more steady employment. Ralph confirmed his faith in Christ on April 14, 1946, at Grace Ev. Lutheran Church in Manitowoc. He later attended Manitowoc High School, where he thrived in the drama and music programs and made lasting friendships. After graduating from high school in 1950, Ralph worked as an apprentice machinist and took some college classes in the Manitowoc area.

Like many of his generation, Ralph chose to serve his country by enlisting in the U.S. Air Force in May 1954, and soon after received an officer's commission. He excelled at observer/navigator training in Harlingen, Texas and enjoyed driving his red 8-cylinder Buick convertible in his spare time. Upon graduation in 1956, Ralph was assigned to fly bomber aircraft in the Strategic Air Command and follow-on navigator training in Sacramento, California.

While in Sacramento, on a chance double-date, he met Margaret Alberta George, a medical technologist, originally from Junction City, Kansas. They quickly fell in love and were married 3 months later, on 20 October 1956. Together they moved to Altus, Oklahoma where daughter Nancy was born in July 1957, and then on to Abilene, Texas where daughter Peggy arrived in October 1958, and twin sons, Chuck and Tom, were born in August 1961.

In 1962, the family moved back to the Sacramento area where Ralph flew weather observation aircraft all over the world. Tired of being on the road constantly, in 1964 he requested an assignment near Cheyenne, Wyoming as a missile launch officer. Besides providing more family stability, this change allowed Ralph time to work on completing his mechanical engineering degree at the University of Wyoming.

In 1969, Ralph moved his family to Laramie, Wyoming, where he earned his degree in 1970, after which the Air Force promptly sent him to Southeast Asia for a one-year deployment. While there, in the summer of 1971he and Margaret celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary in Bangkok, Thailand. Following staff assignments in Dayton, Ohio and Grand Forks, North Dakota, he retired from the Air Force in 1977 as a lieutenant colonel.

Ralph and Margaret settled down in Laramie where Ralph was certified as a real estate appraiser and later sold life insurance across southeast Wyoming for several years, until hearing the call to Christian ministry as a Lutheran pastor in 1987.

After completing seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and a year-long vicarage in Torrington, Wyoming, Ralph was ordained in 1992 and settled in as a dual parish pastor in western Nebraska at Saint Paul's Lutheran Church in Bridgeport and Mount Calvary Lutheran Church in Bayard until retiring again to Laramie in 1998.

Ralph enjoyed more than 25 full and active years with Margaret living near the mountains and serving with his church community and friends at Zion Lutheran, including leading a small men's Bible study group every Wednesday morning at the Prairie Rose Cafe.

He is fondly remembered for his dry sense of humor, his remarkable singing voice, his heart for others, and his timely help and guidance to his children and their families over the years.

Ralph was proceeded in death by his wife of 68 years, Margaret. He is survived by his sister Laverne Mattes; his daughters, Nancy Alford, and Peggy (John) Grunow; sons Chuck (Locke) Jaeger and Tom (Sally Ann) Jaeger; grandchildren Colin, Heather, Beth, Carl, Andrew, Evan, Jackson, Lee, and Eva; and numerous great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Lutheran Hour Ministries at www.lhm.org or Lutheran Ministries, 660 Mason Ridge Center, Dr. St. Louis, MO 63141-8509.

Services will be held on Monday, July 27, 2026, beginning at 10:00 a.m. at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 308 NW 164th St, Edmond, OK 73013.