Obituary of Paul Leonard Ritter

Paul Leonard Ritter, 65, of Peoria, passed away on Sunday, August 22, 2021. Paul was born on April 22, 1956, and grew up in Urbana, IL. He was a gentle soul. He excelled at the sports he played and was gifted academically. Paul played varsity golf, cross-country, and track for Urbana High School. Once, he won both a Champaign-Urbana golf tournament and a tennis doubles championship in the same year. Paul attended the University of IL, coaching youth soccer in the summers. Growing up in a university town afforded him the opportunity to learn to ice skate. He played ice hockey on the U of I team and was voted the most valuable player his freshman year. Paul scored two of the five goals during the championship game that year. He graduated from the U of I with a Civil Engineering degree. Subsequently, he worked for the US Army Corps of Engineers and later, for an Urbana engineering firm. Sadly, Paul was diagnosed with schizophrenia soon after graduating from college. His adult years were challenging as he coped with this devastating disease. Paul’s mother Helen D Ritter and sister Melissa L Ritter preceded him in death. Surviving Paul are his father John W Ritter, sister Leslie Ritter-Jenkins (Jim Jenkins), Stephanie Marcus (Steven), an uncle and aunt, and nieces and nephews. Memorials to celebrate Paul’s life may be sent to National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, NAMI, https://nami.org/Home. Cremation Specialists of Central Illinois is assisting the family. Online condolences may be left at www.csofil.com.