Sep. 10, 1932 - Sep. 22, 2018
Date of Service: Oct. 5, 2018
BURLEY – Charles Ray Warren, an 86-year-old resident of Burley, passed away at Parke View Rehabilitation and Care Center, surrounded by his loving family, on Saturday, Sept. 22, 2018.
Ray was born Sept. 10, 1932, in the View area of Burley, Idaho, the first child of Charles Douglas and Alta Virginia (Mooso) Warren. His sister, Barbara, was also born in View two years later. Five years later, after the family moved to Woodland, Calif., his sister, Geraldine, completed the family. Ray had many happy memories of living in Woodland! When Ray was eight years old, they moved back to Declo where they lived with his grandparents, Walter and Nellie Mooso, on the farm. Ray’s mother and sisters moved to Burley, but Ray stayed on the farm with his grandparents, helping Walter with the chores of farming and milking cows. He attended school through high school in Declo, where he made many lifelong friends and played basketball and football - which he enjoyed.
He was drafted into the United States Army on Dec. 14, 1954, during the Korean Conflict, and spent one year in Germany. He did not realize until after his honorable discharge in December of 1956, how much he really enjoyed his time in Germany! After returning home from the Army, Ray worked for Mountain States Tel. & Tel. Co., as a lineman. In June of 1957, he married his soul mate, Shirley Shade. They celebrated their 61st wedding anniversary on June 1, 2018. They had two sons, Michael Ray and Mark Lee, and a daughter, Shanna Irene.
Ray was a man of many talents and worked many places - from sorting spuds in Nyssa, Ore., hauling milk in cans from the farm to the creamery, owning his own trucks, and hauling hay, potatoes, corn, or whatever (which he truly loved), to his job at Gordon Paving Co., where he worked his way up from raking asphalt to transport driver and later retired as superintendent. Ray worked for 25 years there and took great pride in doing a good job and meeting countless residents of the community to bid their paving jobs.
He was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and appreciated and enjoyed his home teachers throughout the years. He was also a member of the IOOF and Ruth Rebekah Lodge of Burley, until the Burley Lodge closed. He then became a member of the Jurisdictional Lodge.
Ray loved spending “together time” with family and especially enjoyed the yearly vacations to Redfish Lake. He had struggled for the past few years with complications from Lewy-Body dementia. The family expresses their deepest appreciation to the caring staff at Parke View Care Center; they are truly angels in disguise!
He is survived by his wife, Shirley; his children, Michael Warren of Burley, and Shanna (Kevin) Paff of Vancouver, Wash.; a daughter from a previous marriage, Kathy (Tom) Gibson of Mesa, Ariz.; eight grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; one sister, Geraldine (Pete) O’Connor of San Andreas, Calif.; half-brothers, Terry (Linda) Warren of Paul, Nathan (Kathy) Warren of Albion, and Clyde (LaRae) Warren of Kimberly; and a half-sister, Crystal (Doug) Martin of Burley.
He was preceded in death by his parents; grandparents; a sister, Barbara (Gene) Priest; and his beloved son, Mark, who was waiting to greet him with a big bone-crushing hug!
The funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5, at Rasmussen-Wilson Funeral Home, 1350 E. 16th St., in Burley, where family and friends may call from 12:30 until 1:45 p.m. Burial will be in Pleasant View Cemetery with military rites accorded by the Mini-Cassia Veterans Group.
The family suggests memorials be directed to the Alzheimer’s Association at act.alz.org/donate.
