Rameses owner Rob Hogan dies

Correction (October 14, 1:05 a.m.): Due to a reporting error, this story incorrectly stated the age of Rob Hogan. He was 54. The story also incorrectly stated the location of Hogan’s injury. He fell and injured his hip. The story also misstated Hogan’s job when he met his wife. He was a farmer and sold firewood. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the errors.

Rob Hogan, the man who cared for Rameses, UNC’s mascot, died Friday morning from injuries he sustained falling off his tractor. He was 53.

Susan Leonard, the sister of Hogan’s wife, Ann Leonard, confirmed the death on Friday.

Ann Leonard met Hogan when she bought firewood from him before he was a farmer. The two had been married for 21 years.

“It’s been a terrible shock and a terrible loss,” she said.

She described Hogan as a generous and loving father, as well as a man who had tried his hardest to adapt to farming near an increasingly urban Carrboro.

“He was the best,” she said.

She said there has been a heartwarming outpour of support from the community. A website devoted to updates on his condition recorded more than 77,000 visits.

Abraham Palmer, owner of Box Turtle Bakery, said he has been working with Hogan since 2008 and bought part of Hogan’s wheat crop in 2009.

He described Hogan as more friend than business associate.

“He was a truly warm kind of individual,” he said.

Palmer said his business relationship with Hogan’s Magnolia View Farm, the supplier of Box Turtle Bakery’s wheat, has been a warm one.

“It was all a handshake and a smile,” he said.

Hogan had been hospitalized since Sept. 15 for complications that arose after he injured his knee falling off his tractor after a day of working in his field. The next day, he was unable to feel parts of his leg.

The knee injury had led to a condition called rhabdomyolysis, in which injured muscle tissue dies and releases harmful toxins to the kidneys. Hogan had undergone multiple surgeries and was in critical condition following the accident.

In the days following his admission to UNC Hospitals, Hogan’s condition had been slowly improving, family members said.

He was the fourth generation of Hogans to care for Rameses since the ram was named UNC’s mascot in 1924.

Saturday’s football game against Clemson University marked the third home game in a row without Rameses, the living incarnation of UNC’s mascot.

Hogan’s stay in the hospital had been the reason for Rameses’ absence from the first two home football games.

Ann Leonard said a combination of Hogan’s sons Daniel, James and Henry, other family members and neighbors would be the ones to care for Rameses, among other duties and chores.

“We’re just working together until we can figure out how to do it long-term,” she said.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Conservation Trust for North Carolina, the Chebeague and Cumberland Land Trust and the Orange-Durham Cattlemen’s Association.

The family is still planning a memorial service.

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.