Indian River County deputies confirm murder-suicide in Lakewood Village

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — After a natural disaster upended a couple's lives 14 years ago, Vero Beach became their second chance at enjoying retirement.

"They liked how close they were to everything," Vicki Ranson said about her parents, William and Donna Ranson, who lived in the Lakewood Village RV Village for more than a decade. "My mom enjoyed crocheting, and my dad liked to read."

The retirees had moved to the manufactured home community in the 1400 block of 90th Avenue after Hurricane Charley destroyed their Punta Gorda home in 2004.

Two gunshots ended their lives Friday, Indian River County sheriff's officials said.

More: Missing Port St. Lucie man found on Greyhound bus heading to Toronto

Detective Michael Dilks said it was being handled as a murder-suicide.

There was no sign of forced entry into the home, Dilks added. The couple were in their 80s, he said. An autopsy will be performed.

The Sheriff's Office was contacted about 7 a.m. Friday about the incident at the home in the 200 block of Mallard Road, located on the east side of Lakewood Village. Vicki Ranson said she found a note on the front door. Her boyfriend entered the home and found their bodies, she said.

The daughter, who also lives in the manufactured home community, said she visited her parents each morning. When she arrived Friday morning, there was a note from her father who wrote he had shot his wife and intended to shoot himself.

There had been no hints from her father he was considering a suicide, she said.

More: 6 benefits of a TCPalm digital subscription

"They both had the flu and my mother hadn't been eating" but there were no other pertinent issues for the couple, Vicki Ranson said.

The Ransons also are survived by a son and three grandchildren. They were preceded in death by one of their sons, Jeffrey Ranson, who died in 1974 at the age of 22.

A Korean War veteran, William Ranson married Donna Ranson and they raised their family in St. Joseph, Michigan, Vicki Ranson said. He worked for 41 years for Whirlpool, while Donna Ranson was a homemaker, she said.

More: St. Lucie deputies investigate connection in three bodies found in Port St. Lucie

More: 'It sure shocked this neighborhood,' man says of 3 bodies found in Port St. Lucie

The couple enjoyed traveling and had visited all 50 states, their daughter said.

Donna Ranson will be buried in Three Oaks, Michigan, her daughter said. William Ranson requested to be cremated. No local services will be held, Vicki Ranson said.

Lamaur Stancil is a breaking news reporter for Florida Today and TCPalm.com. He can be reached at 321-242-3662 or 321-987-7179. E-mail him at lamaur.stancil@tcpalm.com. Follow him on Twitter at @TCPalmLStancil.

