Glen Robert Ray

In Memory of Glen Robert Ray

Glen Ray was a quiet man who lived a good long life filled with family, faith, hard work, service, and many wonderful memories. After 94 years, he passed away peacefully, leaving behind a legacy of love and countless stories to be shared by the family he cherished. While he will be deeply missed, there is great comfort in knowing that he has been reunited with his beloved wife, Joan.

Glen was born on December 2, 1931, in Chandler, Arizona, to Marion Ray and Edna Bertha Hansen. He was one of eight children. At the age of five, his family moved to Mesa, Arizona, where he spent the rest of his childhood. During his freshman year at Arizona State University, Glen joined the United States Air Force on October 2, 1951. Glen served during the Korean War and was stationed in Japan. In 1953, he was stationed at Williams Air Force Base in Arizona, where he trained to become an Airways Operations Specialist and worked in the Control Tower directing airplanes. While stationed at Williams, he also worked alongside his father on the family farm and continued his training.

He married his sweetheart, Joan Allred, on March 22, 1952. Their marriage began a partnership that would last more than 66 years until she passed in 2018.

After his discharge from the Air Force, Glen began a long career with the federal government. He received training in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Burley, Idaho, before transferring to Cheyenne, Wyoming. Eventually, he returned to Tucson, Arizona and finally settled his family in Scottsdale, Az where he spent the remainder of his career at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport as an Air Traffic Controller. He retired after many years of dedicated government service.

Faith and service were also an important part of Glen's life. For more than 40 years, he served as a financial clerk for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He regularly volunteered at the cannery and served as a veil worker in the Mesa Arizona Temple. He quietly gave his time and talents ministering to others.

Glen and Joan raised five children—four sons and a daughter. Their son Scott preceded Glen in death. Wayne, Bruce, Diane, and Lynn survive him, along with their spouses, 26 grandchildren, and 91 great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren, with 2 more great-great-grandchildren expected this fall. Glen was also preceded in death by his grandson Jonathan and all but one of his siblings.

Glen and Joan lived in Scottsdale until 1999, when they built a home together in Gold Canyon where they continued to build memories with family and friends. He was often outside, enjoying nature and laying concrete and tending to his flower gardens. He was especially proud of the home he and Joan built.

Glen was a quiet, kind, hardworking man who rarely stopped moving. Even well into his later years, he found ways to stay busy and productive. He became well known for his love of riding his bicycle. He rode every single day, often logging more than 2,600 miles a year—without ever leaving his own driveway. His determination and consistency were remarkable. Even in his final months, when his health had forced him to slow down, he still rode his stationary bike every day.

He enjoyed puzzles and paint-by-number projects, had a fondness for old cars, and loved watching sports with his family. He also had a unique collection that became a family treasure: over the years, he saved the wrappers from Hershey's Kisses and turned them into a giant ball!

Some of the family's fondest memories were made camping on Mount Graham, a tradition that spans generations. Those trips were filled with cousins, laughter, family adventures, and plenty of stories—including stories about bears that would be told and retold for years to come. Monthly family nights, annual Progressive Dinners during the Christmas holidays, and hikes to the hieroglyphs are simple times together that became some of the most treasured memories of his children and grandchildren.

Glen was not a man who needed to be the center of attention. He was quiet and steady, kind and dependable. He worked hard his entire life and continued to work, serve, help others, and take care of the things around him until his final months, when his health finally required him to slow down. But he still rode his stationary bike every day!

His family will remember him for his quiet strength, his willingness to help, his work ethic, his faith, his sense of consistency and determination, and most of all, his love for his family. He didn't need a lot of attention, and he surely wouldn't have wanted a lot of fuss made over him.

Glen lived a long and meaningful life. He leaves behind a large and loving family who will carry his memory forward through the stories, traditions, and lessons he gave them. After more than six decades of marriage and a long eight years apart, Glen and Joan are together again. And for those who loved them both, that is a beautiful ending to a very good life.

Arrangements by Bunker’s Garden Chapel, www.bunkerfuneral.com. Should this obituary appear anywhere but bunkerfuneral.com, please check our website for accurate details and service information.