Ronald LeRoy Pedersen, 93, passed away peacefully in his sleep on Monday, June 8, 2026 in Vancouver, Washington. More commonly known to his family and friends as Ron, he was born in Cathlamet, Washington on December 30, 1932.

A voracious reader and tremendous scholar, he graduated early and enlisted in the Air Force at age 17, training at Brooks Air Force Base in Texas before deploying to Germany during the Korean War. He served as a radio intercept and crypto operator in the elite and highly secretive 6910th Security Group of the U.S. Air Force Security Service. Off duty he read constantly and loved to sing — and on more than one occasion he sang on base alongside a fellow airman in the same unit who would go on to worldwide fame: a young Johnny Cash. Ron was honorably discharged in June 1954 as an Airman First Class and returned home to Grand Ronde, Oregon.

Shortly after returning home, he met the love of his life, JoAnne Sears Pedersen. After a brief courting, they were married in a candlelight service at Woodland Christian Church in Woodland, Washington on September 23, 1955. He soon became a schoolteacher, teaching elementary and middle school students in several districts across Portland by day and driving trucks in the evenings and on weekends to support his young family. He later received a Master of Science in Teaching from Portland State University in June 1969 and relocated to the Hazel Dell neighborhood of Vancouver, Washington with his family, which grew to five children.

In 1980, his love of books and entrepreneurial spirit led him to purchase the Leaf Thru Book Swap, later called the Hazel Dell Book Exchange, which became one of Clark County's oldest independent bookstores. The bookstore survived the internet era by branching out to another product category, vintage and rare coins, after

he combined his coin collection with a friends to kick off a coin exchange business. Ron lived his dream life, spending his days reading countless books, taking visits from customers and long-time friends, and advising curious coin collectors on the value of their treasures until heart surgery forced him to retire and close the shop at age 86.

A lifelong lover of jazz and blues music, he was a member of the Cascade Blues Association and could be found regularly at jam sessions on weeknights. A captivating storyteller and devoted grandfather, he loved recounting fantastical stories to his 10 grandchildren and encouraged them to pursue their academic, creative, and business ambitions with the same verve and bravado as he had.

Ron was preceded in death last year by JoAnne. He was also preceded in death by his father, Arthur Pedersen; his mother, Owna (Boylan) Perrizo; his stepfather, Maynard Perrizo; and his siblings, Donna Lee (Pedersen) Van Slyke, Gerald Pedersen, and Jauncey Perrizo. Ron is survived by his five children Mike Pedersen, Julie Aguirre, Kelley Campbell, Patty Kellum (Les), and Chris Pedersen (Betsy); his 10 grandchildren Michael Holt Ramirez, Brittany Holt, Zackary Aguirre, Madison Kellum, Moriah Raasch, Wyatt Aguirre, Kayla Aguirre, Jake Pedersen, Josh Pedersen, and Jason Campbell; and three great-grandchildren Elias Aguirre, Lorenzo Aguirre, and Arya Aguirre.

Graveside funeral services with military honors will be held on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, at 11:00am at Frank Abel Cemetery, located at 3819 Lewis River Rd in Woodland, WA. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Ron's memory to the Veterans of Foreign Wars at vfw.org.