Lewiston Lewiston Morning Tribune,

S.E. (Ed) Ranta, 83, Wednesday, October 21, 1998


S.E. (Ed) Ranta, 83, a Lewiston resident and retired Lewiston High School teacher and counselor, died Tuesday morning at St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in Lewiston.


A memorial service will be held Thursday at 2 p.m. at St. James Catholic Church in Lewiston. Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home in Lewiston is in charge of arrangements.

Lewiston Lewiston Morning Tribune,

S.E. (Ed) Ranta, 83, retired Lewiston teacher, Thursday, October 22, 1998


A memorial service for S.E. (Ed) Ranta of Lewiston, a retired Lewiston High School teacher and counselor, will be held at 2 p.m. today at St. James Catholic Church in Lewiston. The Rev. Bill Crowley will officiate.


Ranta died of a heart attack Tuesday at St. Joseph Regional Medical Center at Lewiston. He was 83.


He was born Dec. 3, 1914, to Felix and Margaret Valimaki Ranta on the family farm on Harris Ridge near Kooskia. He was delivered by his father.


He grew up on Harris Ridge and graduated from Kooskia High School in 1932. After graduating from Lewiston Normal School (now Lewis-Clark State College) in 1934, he taught school in Council, Idaho.


In 1939, he graduated from the University of Idaho and moved to Nezperce, where he taught seventh and eighth grades and also was the principal.


He also met his future wife there, Mary E. Hamacher, who was also teaching. They married Dec. 13, 1941, in Lewiston.


They moved to Lewiston, where he taught at the junior high school. He then went to Lewiston High School to teach advanced math and later became a counselor there.


He was a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy and taught communications at a naval base in Chicago and then served on the USS New Orleans.


His volunteer activities included chairman of the Community Concert Series, Lewiston Orchards Irrigation District board member, University of Idaho Vandal Booster Club member, superintendent of the fruit division of the Nez Perce County Fair, member of the VFW and former commander of Sourdough Post No. 10043, volunteer for Meals On Wheels, volunteer AARP tax counselor and a member of the Lewiston Elks Lodge.


He was an avid bridge and cribbage player and he and his wife enjoyed attending events sponsored by the University of Idaho, ranging from sports to the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. He was proud of establishing an endowment fund, which helps students attending the UI.


He is survived by his wife at their Lewiston home; three daughters, Kay Ranta Jamison of Walla Walla, Becky Ranta McRae of Tigard, Ore., and Betty Ranta Zabielski of Tok, Alaska; a sister, Elsie Baker of Kooskia; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.


The family suggests any memorials be made to the S.E. (Ed) and Mary Ranta Centennial Endowment, Gift Receipting Office, Ad Annex 207, University of Idaho, Moscow 83844-3147.


Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home of Lewiston is in charge of arrangements.

Dedication "The Bengal 1964"


In appreciation for the loyalty that he has shown to the school; the ingenuity and freshness that he has given to his teaching; and the understanding , assistance, and guidance that he has given to all of us sometime in the past-we, the members of the 1964 Bengal staff, dedicate this yearbook to S.E "Ed" Ranta.