Ralph Arthur Dosser

Ralph Arthur Dosser, age 57, died of a heart attack on Sunday, April 26, 2020, in Boulder, Colorado.

Ralph was born on June 1, 1962 in Johnson City, Tennessee. His young life was filled with school, church, hikes, family events, and Boy Scouts. One highlight of his life was the time he spent at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. He graduated from Science Hill High School in 1980 where he received a Merit Scholarship. After some time at Washington and Lee, then Eckerd College, he graduated from ETSU in 1986 with a degree in Journalism. While a student he served as a reporter on the East Tennessean and enjoyed participating in the ETSU Theater. During his student years, Ralph worked for the Bristol Herald Courier as a general assignment /night police reporter.

He later joined the staff of the Kingsport Times-News, handling the police and court beats. While a reporter for the Knoxville Journal he wrote an award-winning science and technology series and an article was published in Popular Science magazine. Ralph was working on a master’s in computer science at the University of Tennessee, when he took a job with CNN in Atlanta. While in Atlanta he met and later married Kala Spangler. In 2000 they moved to Boulder, Colorado where Ralph worked with XOR, Inc. After a few years of consulting work, he joined Inspiring Apps in 2009 where he worked as a Senior Developer until his death.
He loved Colorado and spent many days camping, biking and hiking there. He formed a great network of close friends who have responded to his death with a great sense of loss.

Foremost in his many activities were the summers of a decade that he participated in Burning Man, an event held annually in the Black Rock Desert of northwest Nevada. This late summer event is an experiment in community and art. With an overwhelming number of comments on Facebook, we share one that summarizes the thoughts of his friends, “He touched more folks with his understated charm and amazing wit than you could possibly know. He was always such an enjoyable and incredibly gifted person.”

Though distance made family time a challenge, Ralph never missed a Christmas or a Family Reunion with his entire family each year. His home was filled with pictures and reminisces of his family.

Ralph is survived by his mother, Emma Jane Dosser, of Johnson City; two brothers, Al Dosser of Redmond, Washington, and Jim (Foggy) Dosser of Johnson City; three sisters, Amy Dosser of Durham, NC, Beth Dosser of Johnson City, And Sara (Marc) Moore of Durham, NC; his nieces Emily, Lucy, Merry and Madison; and his nephews Thomas, Michael, Max, and Elijah.

He is preceded in death by his father, Albert Thomas Dosser III, of Johnson City.

A Virtual Celebration of Life will be hosted by his friends in Boulder, Colorado, on Saturday, May 9, 2020 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM. A link to this service can be found on Mr. Dosser’s tribute page.

A private service will be held later in Johnson City.

For any who wish a remembrance, some of his favorite charities are: Human Rights Campaign https://www.hrc.org/; Food Bank of the Rockies https://www.foodbankrockies.org/; and National Parks Foundation https://www.nationalparks.org.