Dr. Ronald A. Ferrendelli
12/31/1935~ 05/08/2010
Dr. Ronald A. Ferrendelli passed away Saturday, May 8, 2010, following a long battle with cancer. He was 74.
He is survived by his sister and brother in-law, Barbara and Paul Wertz, of Arvada; three children, daughters, Shari Ferrendelli, of Thornton and Betta Ferrendelli, of Lakewood and a son and daughter in-law Tony and Hollen Ferrendelli, of Denver. He is survived by a nephew Steve Wertz and his partner David Kear of Newburg, NY, nieces Joni (Wertz) and Vince Marino of Scottsdale, Ariz., and Michelle Harper of Cave Creek, Ariz.; one aunt of Farmington, NM and many nephews, nieces and cousins. He is also survived by a special friend, Jo Frank.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Joe and Mary Ferrendelli, who passed away in 1972 and 1996, respectively.
Dr. Ferrendelli was born on New Year’s Eve in 1935 in Trinidad, Colorado. He attended catholic school and helped his parents run the family grocery store, J&M Grocery while growing up. Dr. Ferrendelli skipped the second and fourth grades in elementary school and completed his secondary education at Trinidad Catholic, graduating high school at 16. He attended Regis University in Denver with the intent to study medicine. He graduated from Regis with a dentistry and physics degree. He attended Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., where he graduated in 1959, as a doctor of dental surgery, at the age of 23.
He returned to Trinidad to start his first practice. He worked in Trinidad briefly before going to Walsenburg to begin work. Dr. Ferrendelli had a thriving practice in Walsenburg until 1972, when he moved to Denver and began another successful practice in Arvada, where he worked until his retirement in 1996.
Dr. Ferrendelli spent his retirement years travelling extensively and serving on several boards: Uplift Internationale, and the Peter Emily International Veterinary Dental Foundation. He loved good food and wine and enjoyed cooking. He also spent his retirement enjoying and working on his 320-acre ranch in Southern Colorado. He purchased the ranch at the foot of the Spanish Peaks in the mid 1980s and spent years making it a place for friends and family to enjoy hunting, holidays and weekend getaways.
Services will be held at the Archdiocese of Denver, 12801 W. 44th Ave. A rosary will be held at 4:30 pm, Thursday, May 13, and a visitation will follow from 5:30 pm to 8 pm. Funeral Mass of Christian burial will be held at 11:30 am, Friday, May 14. Entombment will follow at Mount Olivet Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Denver Hospice, 501 S. Cherry St., Suite 700, Denver, CO, 80246; or ESJH Comprehensive Cancer Center, 1825 Marion St., Denver, CO 80218.
