Elizabeth “Beth” Walsh Ramm, 75, passed away peacefully after a long illness on October 3rd, 2025. A beloved wife, mother, sister, and friend, Beth touched the lives of so many around her. She was a dedicated educator, beginning her career in special education and later finding her true calling in elementary school art. Her love of knowledge, her quick wit, and boundless passion for life made a lasting impression on all who knew her.
Beth was born in Newport, RI, the oldest girl in a family of ten children. While her parents, Mary O’Connell and Alexander R. Walsh, fostered her love of art and music, her Italian nanny, Anna Pluck, taught her invaluable life lessons, including how to cook. She attended primary school at St. Philomena’s in Portsmouth, RI and High School at the Convent of the Sacred Heart in Noroton, CT. She received her bachelor’s degree in education and special education from Loretto Heights College in Denver, CO. When she returned to Rhode Island in 1979, she met her husband Curt Ramm, a navy musician at the time. The two were married in Cincinnati, OH in 1982.
Beth gave birth to two boys, Sean and Gerard. The family settled in Old Saybrook, CT where Beth received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Connecticut and taught at Kathleen E. Goodwin Elementary School. As a teacher, she was known for her compassion in the classroom, her vibrant student-art displays, and her mission to cultivate a love of the arts in children of all ages. After retiring to Middletown, RI, Beth continued to teach art and kindness to the neighborhood children, as well as to her grandchildren, whom she loved with all her heart. Many will remember Beth for the dinner parties she hosted, the heartfelt cards and letters she wrote, and countless sketches she created of musicians performing around the world.
Beth is survived by her husband Curt, her two sons Sean and Gerard, her adored daughters-in-law Addie and Katie, grandson Ryder and granddaughter Eliza. She is also survived by siblings Alex, Peter, Gerard, Mardi, Mary, Ellen, Michael, JT, and Joanna, as well as her beloved nieces and nephews. Beth is also survived by her sister-in-law Dixie Ramm.
An avid reader, a prolific artist, and an endlessly devoted spouse and mother, Beth will be missed for her inexhaustible humor, candor, and fortitude.
Visiting hours will be held on Thursday, October 9, from 4:00-7:00 pm at the O’Neill-Hayes Funeral Home, 465 Spring St, Newport, RI, open to all who knew and loved her. Burial will be private.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Mary Knoll Affiliates at https://www.maryknollaffiliates.org/donate.
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