Austin Brian Ricketts, father and husband, educator and minister, son, brother, and friend, died on August 1, 2024 after living valiantly with a rare and incurable cancer. Austin loved nothing more than to explore and discuss life's big questions, and we trust that now he is beginning to discover the answers he spent his 41 years searching for. His legacy inspires curiosity, courage, and profound love. As a friend recently said of Austin, "Your mind is first rate; your heart is pure gold."

Austin spent his early life in Pennsville, NJ. His childhood was characterized by the abundant affection shared between his parents Brian and Amy (England) Ricketts, with his sister Brielle, and within his large, local extended family. He remembers his boyhood as one of simplicity and love. He especially enjoyed bicycle adventures through his small town and summers with his cousins picking blueberries in the forest behind his grandparents' house in Tionesta, Pennsylvania.

Austin was raised in the dynamic community of his local church, and this early formation inspired a lifetime of spiritual inquiry. He was a student of Biblical Studies at Messiah College and went on to pursue an MA in Religion. After completing his formal education, he continued to be an avid reader in philosophy, theology, and religious studies. He loved to take what he was learning and use it to accompany others as they asked their most profound spiritual questions. He did this in his career as an educator and minister, having worked in youth ministry, chaplaincy, and Christian higher education. And he did so informally, companioning friends and family members through their own religious inquiries. He was a priest without a parish, and the proof of this lies in the vast number of people who count conversations with Austin among their most spiritually formative experiences.

In 2014, Austin married Catherine (Prewitt) Ricketts. They were drawn together through a shared love of art and literature and a shared commitment to deepening their inner lives and their lives with God. Together, they developed a vision for family life that centered curiosity, beauty, and community. In their life together in Philadelphia, Saint Michaels, MD, and eventually in Austin's hometown, they loved reading, writing, taking walks, and hosting small and meaningful gatherings of friends and family. The most important vocation of Austin's life was that of husband and father, and he savored time with his children Torrance (5), Oliver (3), and Evangeline, born two weeks before his death. He was in awe of their very existence, as well as their budding creativity, intelligence, humor, and virtue.

In addition to his wife, children, and father, Austin is survived by his sister Brielle Colbert and brother-in-law Mike; his brother Nate Ezzo, sister-in-law Catherine, nephew James, and niece Alison; his maternal grandmother Doris England; and large and beloved extended families on both sides. He is predeceased by his mother Amy and his grandparents Vincent England and George and Ruth Ricketts.

Relatives and friends are invited to a viewing on Friday, August 9, 2024 from 9:30am to 11:15am at Resurrection Philadelphia, 123 S. 17th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103. A funeral service will follow at 11:30am in the church. Parking is available in the Liberty Place Garage, 44 S. 16th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102, which is adjacent to The Westin Hotel. The service will also be live streamed at youtube.com/ResurrectionPhiladelphia . Interment will be in The Woodlands, 4000 Woodland Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19104, immediately following the service.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Austin's honor to his children's education funds. Visit https://www.ugift529.com/home.html and use the codes E5K-U9Q, D7H-A0C, and E6U-51A.

Arrangements entrusted to The Oliver H. Bair Co. (610) 449-8585