It is with deep sorrow and much love that we mourn the passing of Ronald Hale Wheeler. Ron was born December 15,1943 in Enid, Oklahoma to Kenneth and Doris Wheeler, and passed away on Sunday, June 30, 2024, in Tulsa. Ron attended Nathan Hale High School and received a B.A. in Music Education from The University of Tulsa. After college, he joined the United States Army and played French Horn in the 77th Army Band at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma until his discharge at the rank of Spec 5.

Ron returned to Tulsa and began his music career as a violinist and Production Manager for the Tulsa Philharmonic. In 1970 he was hired as the Assistant Conductor of the Tulsa Youth Symphony Orchestra, and in 1972 he became the Conductor and in 2003 he was made Executive Director. He held those positions until his retirement in 2021. Ron served as an adjunct professor at Oral Roberts University teaching conducting during the 1990s. During his 50-year career with the Tulsa Youth Symphony he received many honors and awards, including the Oklahoma Music Educators Association Lifetime Time Achievement Award. The Tulsa Symphony Orchestra established the Ron Wheeler Lifetime Achievement Award for Music Educators which will continue to honor his legacy for many years to come.

Ron was an avid reader and possessed an extensive and profound knowledge on many subjects including music history, England, and the challenges facing our world today. He enjoyed spending time with friends and enriched many conversations. He loved to travel and enjoyed frequent trips to England. One of his favorite destinations was Yosemite, where he hiked and captured many beautiful images in his camera lens.

Ron was considered by all who knew him to be kind and generous. He will be remembered as an adventurous man with an infectious passion for life. The legacy of Mr. Wheeler, as he was known by his students, will live on in the lives of the hundreds of young musicians he mentored.

Ron was preceded in death by his parents, and is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Cheryl and James Clark; niece and her husband, Jennifer and Dan Gibson; and great nephew and niece, Noah and Emily Gibson; and a host of friends and colleagues.

The family suggests that any donations in memory of Ronald Wheeler be made to the Tulsa Youth Symphony (tulsayouthsymphony.org).

There will be a private celebration honoring Ron's life.