Rev. Cecil Armstrong Ray

Reverend Cecil Armstrong Ray, age 88, of Georgetown, Texas, passed away on Tuesday, August 23, 2011. He was born on December 9, 1922 in Seminary Hill, Fort Worth, Texas to parents William Paul Ray and Annie Lenora (Armstrong) Ray. Cecil married Charlene Andrews, his High School sweetheart, on June 15, 1942. He proposed to Charlene on night of her graduation.

Cecil attended Llano High School in Llano, TX 1933 – 1938 and San Angelo Junior College in San Angelo, TX 1938 – 1939. He received an A.B. Degree from Howard Payne University in Brownwood, TX 1939-42, Th.M. (Master of Theology) Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX 1942-1946 and D.D. (Doctor of Divinity) Howard Payne University, Brownwood, TX 1968.

While in High School, Cecil worked part-time as a bell hop at the Llano Hotel and night clerk. He played offensive lineman for the Llano High School Yellowjackets. He also played football at San Angelo Junior College.

Cecil became a converted Christian at age 7 at Immanuel Baptist Church, San Angelo Texas and was ordained as a minister of the Gospel, August 28, 1940 by the Immanuel Baptist Church, San Angelo Texas at age 17. He preached his first sermon on a ranch near Eldorado, TX where his father Paul Ray had once pastored. He preached at a number of churches that his father W. P. Ray had pastored years before.

He taught school from 1942-44 and served as pastor at Bennet Baptist church, Llano, TX 1940-41; Rowena Baptist Church, Rowena, TX 1941-1943; Alexander Baptist Church, Dublin, TX 1943-1945; and Risen Star Baptist Church, Sulphur Springs, TX 1943. During the war he sold War Bonds in Rowena, Texas (1940-1945) and was a Boy Scout Master, also in Rowena during 1944. He was a member of the Optimist Club in Lubbock Texas from 1946-1956 and the Sertoma Club in San Antonio from 1956 - 1961.

He started and was pastor at Arnett-Benson Baptist Church, Lubbock, TX 1946-1956. During his tenure the church grew to a membership of 1500. In January, 1952, while living in Lubbock, Cecil and Charlene's daughter, Susan, contracted polio and nearly died. She was left with only a small amount of movement in her arms and legs and her diaphragm was paralyzed. After being in a Lubbock hospital for several weeks Susan and parents were flown by special military C-47 aircraft, in her massive iron lung, to the polio center at Jefferson Davis Hospital in Houston. According to Cecil, "She slept and we prayed." The polio center was crowded due to the polio epidemic in 1952 and after 5 months they returned to Lubbock.

Cecil was determined that Susan would have the best life possible and set out to build all sorts of breathing equipment, specialized wheel chairs and desks that made use of Susan's tiny hand and foot movements. Cecil learned to weld and work with fiberglass which was a relatively new technology in the early 1950s and built a light weight "iron lung" out of fiberglass which enabled Susan to travel, first around Texas and eventually from coast-to-coast. He had to do all this because in those days there were very few devices to help handicapped individuals. In the 1960s Cecil worked with a volunteer engineer from IBM to develop a specialized typewriter which enabled Susan to become a prolific writer.

In 1956 Cecil resigned from Arnett-Benson to become Superintendent of Missions for the San Antonio Baptist Association and served from 1956-1961, coordinating mission activities for 70 churches. He helped start several new churches during this time. In 1960, while in San Antonio, Cecil was recognized by the Baptist General Convention of Texas as the Texas Baptist "Father of the Year" for providing a "new way of life" for daughter Susan, a victim of paralytic polio.

In 1961 the family moved to Grand Prairie, TX and Cecil became the Secretary of the Cooperative Program and Church Finance Department of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, Dallas, Texas, 1961-1967. He was promoted to Director of the Stewardship Division, Baptist General Convention of Texas, Dallas, Texas, 1967-1975. During his tenure church contributions to the Cooperative Program doubled. He and wife Charlene developed and wrote numerous training materials to assist Texas Baptist churches with their financial stewardship and planning. From 1966-69 he Chaired the Christian Electronic Committee to study ways to utilize electronics in church programs and was Chairman of Video Tape Service 1979-85 to initiate the use of video tape programs in churches. While in Dallas he conducted several trips to foreign missions including Brazil, Panama, Kenya and Tanzania.

In 1976 Cecil became the General Secretary-Treasurer of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, Raleigh, North Carolina, 1976 - 1983 with a combined church membership of one million. His stable leadership and ability to motivate people endeared him to the people of North Carolina. During this time he received a Distinguished Alumnus Award, from the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1978. From 1984 - 1988 Cecil served as the National Director of Planned Growth in Giving, Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention. He retired Dec. 31, 1988 but continued to be active in the Williamson Baptist Association and taught Sunday School at Crestview Baptist Church, Georgetown, TX until 2004 when his health would no longer allow him to teach.

He authored and published the following books: "The Holy Spirit and His Ministry" (1953); "Living the Responsible Life" (1975); "Christian Family Money Management" (1969); "How to Specialize in Christian Living" (1981); "Witnessing-Giving, These Go Together" (1988); and co-authored with Susan Ray "Cooperation: The Baptist Way to a Lost World"(1985); plus numerous articles for state and Southern Baptist Convention. His most widely used book, "Living the Responsible Life" which emphasized all aspects of responsible, Christian living, has been translated into Spanish, Korean and several African languages.

He loved to build things, whether new equipment for Susan, a homemade go-cart for son Lanny, furniture for the house and friends or even an entire house as the one the family lived in in Grand Prairie and later in Georgetown. He took on all projects with eagerness. Cecil epitomized the "can do" spirit both in his family life and in his ministry. He loved football. In the 1930’s he used to ride into to Austin from Llano with friends to see the University of Texas Longhorns play and he followed the Dallas Cowboys intently with many times rushing away from the Thanksgiving dinner table to Texas Stadium in Irving to see the annual game. He mainly followed football but did acquire a taste for College basketball while living in Raleigh NC - while Michael Jordan played for the Tar Heels of Univ. NC at Chapel Hill. He loved ice cream, especially when home made. In summers having homemade ice cream every Saturday evening was as much a part of life as church on Sunday.

He is dearly loved by family friends and was blessed to have many wonderful and loving friends and church fellowship across Texas and North Carolina and will be missed by so many of us. But we all know in our hearts that he has gone home to be with his Lord and Savior and is now reunited with Charlene and Susan.

He was preceded in death by his parents William and Annie Ray, wife Charlene Ray, daughter Barbara Susan Ray, brothers Truett, Junius, Jessie, Woodie and Henry Ray and sisters, Mary Ruth Cervenka, and Margaret Ray.

He is survived by his son, Lanny Ray of Austin; daughter-in-law, Mary Ray of Austin; granddaughter, Jennifer Cooper and husband Cain of Leander, TX; grandson, Michael Ray of Dallas, TX; great-granddaughter, Angelynn Cooper of Leander, TX; sister, Beth Hunsinger of Midland, TX; and many nieces and nephews.

The family will receive friends for a time of visitation from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. on Thursday, August 25, 2011 at the Cook-Walden Davis Funeral Home in Georgetown, Texas. Funeral services will be at 10:00 A.M. on Friday, August 26, 2011 at Crestview Baptist Church in Georgetown with Reverend Dan Wooldridge officiating. Interment will follow at I.O.O.F. Cemetery in Georgetown.

Serving as pallbearers will be Bob Cox, Richard Toman, Jerry Burkett, Barry Richey, Dave Coburn, Don Cramer and David Todd.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made in Cecil's honor to Crestview Baptist Church, Georgetown, TX; the Cooperative Program of the North Carolina Baptist State Convention, Cary, NC; the Cooperative Program of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, Dallas, TX; the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, Atlanta, GA; or the Alzheimer's Association.

Arrangements by Cook-Walden Davis Funeral Home, 2900 Williams Drive, Georgetown, Texas 78628 (512)863-2564.