Raymond Edward Parry, age 89, died peacefully on Sunday, March 22, 2009, in Perrysburg, Ohio.
Ray was born March 5, 1920 in Whitehall, N.Y., to parents Emrys and Elizabeth (Davies) Parry.
Ray graduated from Whitehall High School and went on to receive his Associates Degree from Green Mountain College in Poultney, Vt., where he ran track, was captain of the football team and received both academic and athletic honors. Ray furthered his education at the University of Michigan where he received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering on May 29, 1943.
Upon graduation he attended Midshipman’s School at Columbia University and Diesel Engineering School at Cornell University. He served in the US Navy from 1943-45 as the Engineering Officer aboard his ship the LSM-21, participating in six major battles in the Pacific theater including the Battle at Leyte Gulf.
Recently, he was proud to be among those whose stories were recorded for the Library of Congress veteran’s documentation project of US war veterans.
Immediately after the war he worked for Clark Brothers, a compressor manufacturer, as a mechanical engineer. He worked with his sons, among others, in founding Bay Enterprises in 1983. Today, Bay Controls, co-founded by one of his six sons, located in Maumee, Ohio is in its 25th year as an innovative compressor control and energy efficiency business. He continued in the compressor business until his retirement in 1990.
Ray was a beloved human being known for his kindness, his wisdom and his love of learning. He read historical accounts of every character in history that interested him particularly those who served our country. He loved to share his knowledge with his friends and family, explaining the physics of a "venturi" wind pattern or the mechanics of an engine to his children and grandchildren. Ray kept his seven children busy with hiking, camping, stone wall building and innumerable athletic activities. He found peace and respite listening to his favorite jazz music, rebuilding automobile engines in his garage and in long walks along the railroad tracks.
Ray was preceded in death by his parents, Emrys and Elizabeth Parry, brothers, Sherman and Irving, and sister, Ara.
He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Daphne (Jackson) Parry, Holland, Ohio, and his children, Vincent (Mary) of New Orleans, La., and their children, Stephanie and Amanda, Diana J. Rentz (Stephen) of Whitehouse, Ohio and their children, Elizabeth and Parry, Edward (Helen) of Powhatan, Va., Raymond E. (Barbara) of Denver, Colorado, their children, Ocean and William, William J. of Greenville, Tenn., his children, April and Belden, Roy D. (Lorrie) of Maumee, Ohio and their children, Sean, Drew and Ray, and Scott B. (Frances) of Monclova, Ohio, their children, Stephen, Virginia and Sarah as well as 16 great- grandchildren residing around the country and nieces and nephews Sherman Parrott, Ray Parrott, Karen Beckwith, Jimmy Beckwith and Jean Mead in upstate New York.
The family thanks the staff at Hospice of Northwest Ohio for their gentle and gracious care.
There will be a private graveside service for the family on Wednesday, March 25, 2009. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that contributions be made to the Lutheran Village Cross Creek Activity Committee, Holland Ohio.
Arrangements by Maison-Dardenne-Walker Funeral Home, Maumee.
