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Ronald Dean Fine, 86, died July 19. Ron Fine was born July 13, 1932, in St. Louis County, Missouri, to Andrew and Ruby Fine.

From the time he was big enough he hunted and fished with his father and cousins. Many weekends were spent sleeping on gravel river bars and frying fish. He loved duck hunting the best, but hunted deer, elk, quail, pheasant, turkey, and geese. He spent every summer working on his grandmother’s farm and loved the outdoors.

After graduating from high school he served in the US Army during the Korean conflict as an anti-aircraft gunner. When he was discharged, he worked at Monrovia Nurseries in California in charge of all the azalea bushes. For the rest of his life he could recount every Latin name of each species and was very skilled with flowers, planting, and pruning. He was fortunate then to enter into the sporting goods business, which was always his primary interest, working first in a store in Los Angeles frequented by Hollywood stars. He had always hunted but now he learned to clay target shoot, shooting trap and skeet at the many gun clubs in the area.

As time went on he returned to the Midwest, to his roots, where he worked for sporting goods distributors and eventually was employed by Winchester Arms and Ammunition. He represented Winchester in that part of the country until he was transferred to New Haven to the Winchester Arms plant. He worked in marketing and new product development and worked with Sears Roebuck as the supplier of their private label sporting goods. When he left Winchester, he worked at O.F. Mossberg & Sons in North Haven as a vice president of sales. Later he represented several other companies also. His career allowed him to travel and meet people from all over the world. He fished in many countries and hunted in several more. He shot skeet with Clark Gable and fished and played tennis with Ted Williams many times.

He followed the Cardinals and the Red Sox. He was elected to the All-American skeet shooting team. He and his wife Cheryl, competed together at trap shoots for years. He continued his shooting until he reached his eighties. He never lost his interest in his outdoor pursuits. When he retired, he joined the Killingworth Lions and participated fully in their activities, serving a term as president. Ron was a member of several shooting organizations and conservation organizations that worked on preserving wildlife habitat. He was active in his church, helping with repairs and maintenance. He belonged to the Madison Rod and Gun club for more than forty years, serving as president twice, greatly valuing the friendships there. He loved a wide range of music from opera to Ella Fitzgerald, read every spy novel, liked western shows, and tied the best knots. Ron loved his dogs, all Labradors. Ron was blessed to live a full life, doing the things he loved. He was a Christian, a gentleman, and a patriot.

Ron is predeceased by his parents, sister Joan, brother Richard, and his beloved daughter Deborah. He is survived by his wife Cheryl, daughter Stephanie, son-in-law Bard, and their three children Whitney, Hadley, and Bard. Ron will be missed by countless friends.

A service of celebration and remembrance will be held at the Congregational Church in Killingworth on July 28. There will be calling hours at noon followed by a service at 1:00 p.m., including military honors. Everyone is invited to a reception in the parish hall of the church afterward.