December 24, 1934 ~ March 15, 2017
Billy Joe Ray, age 82, of Indianapolis, IN died on Wednesday, March 15, 2017 after a long illness. He was born on December 24, 1934 in Scottsburg, IN to the late Robert L. and Erma L. (Long) Ray.
He was an avid pilot who was a member of the Quiet Birdmen aviation club. He served his country in the United States Army and worked for AT&T in sales for 35 years.
He is survived by his daughters, Kristy (Richard) Powell of Fishers, Kellie Celeste and Kendra (Jack) Edlinger of Florida; grandchildren, Allison (Bob) Rickard Whiting, Erin (Brad) Nagel, Ashleigh (Tim) Taylor, Jordan Edlinger, Lauren McKnight, Kelsey Edlinger, Alexandra Powell, Adrianne Powell and Courtney (Tom) Ritter; great-grandchildren, Brayden and Andrew Nagel, Hudson Taylor, Nora Jane Whiting, Trenton and Hunter Anderson, Sophia, Gretchen, Maya and Shane Ritter. He was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Kimberly J. McKnight; sisters, Rosilyn R. Hine and Diane R. Garvin; and the mother of his four daughters, Janis Shafer-Arvin.
Visitation will be held on Monday, March 20, 2017 from 10:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. at Legacy Cremation & Funeral Services – Lawrence, 5215 N. Shadeland Ave. A graveside service will take place at 1:00 p.m. at Oaklawn Memorial Gardens, 9700 Allisonvile Rd., Fishers, IN. Memorials in memory of Mr. Ray can be made to the Susan G. Koman Foundation. Envelopes will be available at the funeral home.
May each of you find courage to face tomorrow as you rest in the knowledge that we truly care about each of your needs and that we will be here to walk beside you in your journey of grief.
Eddie Beagles and the staff of Legacy Cremation & Funeral Services
Fly High in the Heavens above me my sweet daddy,I will miss you so much,thanks for being a great dad to me,you are forever in my heart,your Kellie girl
Daddy, I love you and will miss you so very much.Rest in peace Daddy 🛩
You were a good father in law Rest In Peace, Bj
Love you always Pawpaw. Thanks for sharing with me the joy of flying for the first time and teaching me how to fly the V tail. I’ll never forget our flights to get Mrs Wicks pies to bring home. And how to drive a stick shift, even if I stalled the TT out a few times on the back roads to the Mt Comfort Airport.
You will be missed BJ. To BJ’s family: You have my sympathy on the loss of BJ. BJ never failed to put a smile on my face on countless times he landed at the Randolph County Airport to get fuel and of course to go pick-up pies. What a character that will truly be missed.
I love you Popo. Now you can fly again.