Ronald Henry Currin was born in Heppner, Oregon, on August 21, 1960, to Ronald Currin and Judy Lazinka Currin. Affectionately, he was known to family and friends as Ronny or RC.
He was raised on the family cattle ranch on Buttercreek with his brothers, Tony, Mike, Steve, and sister Jennifer. Ron graduated from Heppner High School in 1978, then attended Blue Mountain Community College and Montana State University on rodeo scholarships, where he was a three-time College National Finals Rodeo qualifier. At Montana State, he discovered his love of the cattle industry. After returning home from Montana State University, Ron pursued the family’s passion of rodeo. He traveled for several years, over thousands of miles, with his brothers and friends making a lifetime of memories and friendships. He was an accomplished all-around cowboy, competitive in both calf roping and steer wrestling. Ron was most proud of capturing the prestigious Pendleton Round-Up All-Around Championship in 1993, and the Steer Wrestling in 1995.
After Ron’s rodeo career, he switched gears and began pursuing his passion of trading cattle. He started in the business at the bottom and worked his way up to become a first-class cattle trader. Ellington Peek and Western Video Markets were instrumental in starting his career and allowed him to broaden his cattle trading network. In 2005, he found his ultimate position as Director of Procurement with John Wilson and Beef Northwest. He loved what he did and valued the people he worked with in the cattle industry.
Ron married Rayanne Engel in 2005 and they divided their residency between Clements, Calif., and Pendleton, Oregon. In 2007 they welcomed twins, son Riley and daughter Rayna, who have been their pride and joy.
After a lengthy battle with metastatic bladder cancer, Ron passed away December 3, 2021, at his Clements home with his wife by his side.
Preceded in death by his brother Mike Currin in 1990. Ron is survived by wife Rayanne, son Riley, and daughter Rayna. In addition, father Ron Sr., mother Judy, brother Tony (wife Kelli), brother Steve (wife Lisanne), sister Jennifer Gutridge (husband Shane), sister-in-law Judy Pederson (husband Curtis), and nine nieces and nephews.
A celebration of life was held in Pendleton at the Convention Center on December 31. Memorial contributions may be made to the Ron Currin Memorial, c/o Bank of Eastern Oregon, PO Box 39, Heppner, OR 97836, or to Hospice of San Joaquin, www.hospicesj.org in Ron’s memory.