Ralph W. Sneed of St. Louis Missouri was called to be with the Lord on Friday, December 19, 2025. The son of Leo and Ruth Sneed, Ralph lived a full life of service and abundant giving.
He is survived by his college sweetheart Rae, to whom he was married for 58 years. His sons Philip (Mallory) and Clark. His grandchildren Alexia (Dennis), Kalei (Tyrel), Bella, Farrah, Cannon, Brooklyn and Maddox. His great-grandchildren Reagan, Lucas and Ellie. He was a brother, a cousin, and an uncle to many.
Ralph was an active and integral member of Kirkwood Baptist Church and part of the choir and ministry teams. He sang lead in the quartet The Psalmsmen for over 4 decades. Ralph was an educator at Southwest High School and Kirkwood High Schools for his entire career and a football and baseball coach to hundreds of student athletes.
Ralph’s generosity knew no bounds. His faith, kindness and humor were uniquely his and will be sorely missed throughout his entire family and community. He fulfilled a call to educate, inspire and give.
Below is an excerpt from his son:
My Dad was a giant. A titan of character. An intellectual mammoth. A spiritual and philosophical student and mentor. A devoted son, brother and uncle. A committed husband and head of house. A shining sun of knowledge. A poet. A powerhouse athlete and champion of Football, Baseball and Softball. A coach to hundreds. Mr. Sneed, a dry humored teacher to tens of thousands. A masterful writer and wordsmith. A Sunday school teacher. A devout child of God. A rock of a father. A boisterous and brilliant choir member for more than half a century. An ardent cinephile. A fanatic of humor. Lead singer of the best church quartet for over 4 decades. A servant of others. A most devoted friend and ally to the broken-hearted. An insurmountable bar of gift-giver. A selfless sharer. An outdoorsman and naturalist. The one who taught me the true measure of a man. A joker. A behemoth of love and care as a Papa. A leviathan of masculine love. The most consistent being we will know. A grand man. A sincerely good man. A tower. A colossus. The world now has a hole in it, the size of the mountains and craters he taught us to revere. Lord, thank You for the time. My Dad was a giant.
A visitation service will take place on January 2nd at Kutis Funeral Home’s Affton Chapel from 6-8pm.
A memorial service will be held the following day January 3rd at Kirkwood Baptist Church at 11am. In lieu of flowers the family ask you please make donations to the ministries at Kirkwood Baptist Church at 211 North Woodlawn St. Louis MO 63122.
Truly sorry to have heard about this. What a beautiful and wonderfully written excerpt from his son. I will keep the family and all his friends in my thoughts and prayers.
My condolences to all who Ralph touched in this lifetime. He was clearly loved and respected beyond measure which speaks to who he was.
My condolences to Phil (Moon) “.Mama Moon” and the entire Sneed Family
My condolences to Moon and the entire Sneed family. Know he is watching over all of you now.
Mr. Ralph taught me so much and was my first mentor as I began my teaching career. He meant so much to my family. May we all strive to live our lives as he did: with abundant curiosity and kindness. Thank you for being our teacher and our friend.
Very sorry for your loss. Your family is in our thoughts and prayers.
Our condolences go out to the Sneed family. Ralph was a clasmate and teammate at Southwest High School. May his memory be everlasting.
As a friend from our high school days, Ralph was a fair and decent man. He refused a discount on his fee at our CPA office because he said, “A man is worthy of his hire.”
Every year he brought John and I each a new stone of some kind with its description because he knew how much I love rocks. He was always learning new things and sharing that knowledge. He was truly an inspiration and a joy to know.
I am one of the fortunate people who can say that I was friends with Ralph Sneed for the past fifty years. While I did not take any classes with Mr. Sneed during my years at Southwest High School I was privileged to work with him on many of the “aud” sessions led by the student council during our time there. No one attending Southwest at that time could ever forget the “aud” session with the surprise ending being Steve Mizerany of the “New Deal” rising up and skating across the stage of Southwest High School. That was one of many happy trips down memory lane with Ralph as life continued.
I re-connected with Ralph in 2004 while serving in the music department of Southwest Baptist Church. It was at this time I got acquainted with his wife Rae.
Both were faithful church and choir members of Southwest Baptist Church. Our friendship continued to the present time. He was a great teacher, leader, choir and church member, friend and an exemplary Christian man.
My sympathies to the Sneed family.
I met Ralph in 1971, when he returned to Southwest High to join the football coaching staff and science teacher.
He was always an easy-going guy, liked and respected.
Our deepest condolences to Rae, Philip and Clark on your loss. Ralph was one of the great souled people we find in this world and it was an honor to know Ralph and Rae for many years. Though i knew about him before from SWHS, I first personally met Ralph in 1971 when I spoke at Southwest Baptist Church in St. Louis and we’ve been in contact with him (and Rae) ever since. We mourn with Rae and family, with the hope of seeing Ralph again in eternity.
We are so sorry for your loss! We knew Mr. Sneed from Southwest Market sandwich shop! He was such a nice & intelligent gentleman! We had some good conversations about life in general! “May The Eternal Light Shine Upon Ralph” Mary & Jack Oesterle. Kirkwood, Missouri
To Rae, Clark and Phillip: There are really no words to describe your loss or grief – so just know we hold you in our hearts and prayers. Praying for sweet memories of Ralph to flood your hearts during the darkest of days; may you know in new ways the presence of our Comforter and the healing hand (though the healing is long and hard) of God as he teaches you to carry both Ralph’s memory and your loss at the same time. With love, Jo and Rick Moore
The last time I saw coach Sneed was over 45 years ago just before I graduated from Southwest. He and head football coach Leon Anton helped me prepare for the long life ahead.
My heartfelt condolences to Rae,and the rest of the Sneed family. I met Ralph when I worked for Southwestern Bell ,and he was a frequent customer at Southwest Market. Ralph was a constant presence there most days and I had the pleasure of becoming good friends with him and Rae ( she joined us most Friday’s ) 😃.
We had so many wonderful conversations covering many subjects. We traded books on history,and many.,many unforgettable conversations about those ,sports ,and just life in general.
I will miss my old friend as will all who had the privilege of knowing RALPH.
Rest in Peace Dear Friend ❤️
My heart is so saddened to hear about the death of Ralph. A dear and loving friend. So kind and thoughtful. Always ready to help a friend in need
We were in a couples bridge club for many years and needless to say he was very good.
He loved his Lord and Savior and was welcomed home by Him with open arms. What more can a person ask for.
Ralph you will be missed.
My deepest sympathy an sincere condolences to Phil (Moon) an the Sneed family.
I met Ralph by going to Southwest Market. Through our conversations we found out both of us attended Southwest High School with Ralph being two years ahead of me and both of us being teachers. I would talk about my teaching experience in the Peace Corps for two years and two more years on my own on St. Kitts in the Caribbean. Ralph would talk about his army days in South Korea, working with USO and meeting Bob Hope. He always ask if I had golfed lately when the weather was nice. I will miss Ralph and our talks.
My Father and I had many wide-raging conversations over lunch at Southwest Market. Ralph was a wise and intelligent man. I am truly saddened to hear of his passing. Thank you for your friendship and good cheer, Ralph. I will miss you.
Blessings to his family.
Ralph was a 1964 fellow classmate, and Class President at Southwest High School. I have not seen Ralph in many years but remember him as a popular and kind person.
My condolences to Rae and their family.
RIP Ralph.
Ralph Sneed was the genuine article. He was a fabulous Christian man, a devoted husband, a great father and a wonderful human being in every respect. He was a fine musician and faithful member of the choir at Kirkwood Baptist Church. He was also a great friend. We had lunch together often (he always insisted on driving his white truck) and we would regularly stop at the Southwest Market where we would always bump into many of his friends. Ralph was a great conversationalist. We had wide-ranging discussions on almost every topic imaginable. I loved listening to his stories about Korea and some of the entertainers he met – Bob Hope and Danny Thomas, to name a couple. In addition to his stories, Ralph had the most natural laugh. The picture on his obituary is exactly as I remember Ralph. A smile was always on his face. He was positive, good-natured and incredibly kind. He was also a fine historian, and I loved the times we discussed the Civil War and the nuances of that period of time. His knowledge of Missouri was astounding. If you knew Ralph it didn’t take you very long to figure out that he was a man of immense Christian character – – a straight arrow in every respect. Ralph was an original in every sense of the word. It’s taken me some time to ready myself to write this. I am thankful that God allowed our paths to cross in this life. Ralph was simply one of the finest Godly men I have ever known. I miss him.
Greg and Polly Lundberg
Best Sunday Teacher I had while living in St.Louis. Ralph was a wonderful father, uncle, friend. Ralph will be missed.