Ron helped found the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan (BCAM) in 1976. Shortly after, Ron thought it would be beneficial if some of the states in the Mid-West, who had a coaches’ associations, would meet and discuss what each were doing. He reached out to surrounding states including Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa. Meetings were held annually in the Chicago area and ideas were passed back and forth. These meetings were helpful to states as they developed their associations.

These meetings faded away after a few years. Many years later, Dave Archer called Michigan and inquired if there was a need to bring back these annual get-togethers and expand the number of states. This led to the early stages of our present national association (NHSBCA). And the rest is history.

Not only was Ron instrumental in starting the NHSBCA, he also was a Hall of Fame coach. Coach Vondette spent most of his career at Carrolton High School, a suburb of Saginaw. In 1965 he was named Head Basketball Coach. His 1970 team went 23-1 and lost in the Class B state finals. He was named Class B State Coach of the Year in 1982-83. He entered the BCAM Hall of Fame in 1990. In 1993 he entered the Michigan High School Coaches Hall of Fame. His boy’s varsity coaching record of 27 years was a stellar 425-164. Ron finished out his coaching career at Delta Community College with a 72-63 record.

Ron has enjoyed many years of retirement playing golf and being with his kids (5 boys, 1 girl, 16 grandkids and 4 great grandkids.