Raymond B. Hanlon

Raymond B. Hanlon was blessed with an abundance of leadership qualities. It would be accurate to say that this man was an outstanding luminary and that his natural abilities served him well. He knew with certainty how he wanted to set priorities in all aspects of his life. He struck those who knew him as the kind of person who awoke in the morning with a clear sense of exactly what he expected from his day and how to set about accomplishing those goals. Raymond was a man who definitely liked order and was most comfortable with an organized and structured lifestyle. When this climate was absent, Raymond would set about immediately to create it.

Raymond was born on December 18, 1951 at Yonkers General Hospital in Yonkers, New York. His parents were Raymond and Dorothy Hanlon. Raymond was raised in Yonkers, New York. Raymond was brought up to be reasonable in his actions and was taught to use his intellect wisely. He was an honest and straightforward child, traits that reinforced his self-confidence. Even at a young age, Raymond was credited with having a positive influence on those around him.

The positive atmosphere that Raymond generated spread to his family. Raymond was raised with four siblings. He had one older sister, Bev and three younger brothers and one younger sister, Bruce, Gary, Debbie and Todd. Raymond served as a catalyst within the family. He often found himself in the role of providing fair solutions to those sibling disputes. In every family activity, Raymond was able to demonstrate his uncommon logic and skill at building compromise.

Raymond's enthusiasm for learning and the personal energy that enthusiasm generated led to his exhibiting leadership qualities early on in his childhood. He liked to see things executed properly and showed a skill for taking control of situations that were drifting out of control. At the same time, he was willing to experiment with different approaches as he worked a plan towards a solution. As a young boy, he took part in pool and bowling. In his spare time he liked race motorcylces and cars and play the drums. Raymond's memorable achievements included playing in a battle of the bands against members of Aerosmith and winning.

When it came to academics and school, Raymond's organizational skills reaped dividends. Raymond was able to create a system for getting his class work done in a proper and timely manner. With a strong ability to analyze his schoolwork and assignments, he could apply a practical, common sense approach completing his studies. He showed a natural curiosity in the manner in which he tackled new types of problems and would regularly challenge his own reasoning ability in finding solutions. He graduated from Walt Whitman High School in 1969. He enjoyed some courses more than others and developed favorite classes and teachers. His favorite class in high school was music.

In a group of friends and acquaintances, Raymond was typically the first person to take the initiative to go up and greet someone new. That quality made him very approachable by others throughout his life. This same quality brought Raymond the reward of many friends. Maintaining loyalty to those friends was a trait that came naturally to Raymond. He believed that he should treat others in a fair manner, in the same way he wanted to be treated. Raymond also showed a great deal of appreciation for the accomplishments of his friends. While growing up, some of his best friends were Mike Roberts and Jackie Cocker. Later in life, he became friends with Ted Lynch, Brian and Kim Grishaber and Freddie Quarles. he remained friends with Mike and Jackie.

As Raymond knew in other aspects of his life, he had a clear vision of what he sought in a relationship and worked hard to achieve it. On January 18, 1975 Raymond exchanged wedding vows with Elizabeth McKewen at St. Francic de Sales of McAfee, New Jersey. Beth was a significant part of his life, and it wasn’t necessary for Raymond to be overly sentimental or expressive about it for others to be aware of their mutual devotion. Raymond's secret to success was that he always kept the lines of communication open in the marriage and applied the important skill of being a good listener.

Family and children were important to Raymond, even if he didn’t always show it. Raymond was blessed with five children, three sons, Raymond, Jr., Jason, Shawn and two daughters Samatha and Jennifer. They were also blessed with three grandchildren, Athena, Dominick and Kira. Raymond was able to keep order in the family by using the same efficient and straightforward methods with the family as he did at work. Raymond rarely made a scene when it came to discipline. Instead, he was subtle and patient in his dealings when teaching the children right from wrong.

At work Raymond was viewed as a natural leader. He could marshal all of the available resources, including personnel and materials, in order to meet virtually any objective. He was great at developing strategies and made maximum progress with little wasted effort. Raymond was also adept at uncovering new and more efficient ways of getting things done. He was able to establish and meet objectives and schedules through long range planning and was always able to keep the big picture clearly in sight. Although Raymond might have been described by some as an overachiever, he was without question a dedicated and diligent employee. His primary occupation was as an Operating Engineer. He was employed for 16 years by CPI.

Not only did Raymond find pleasure in pursuing his various hobbies, he also enjoyed the discovery and research involved in learning about them. His skill at problem solving had a positive influence on these activities as well. His favorite pursuits were playing music, photography and sky diving.

No matter what the activity was, Raymond had the ability to motivate others. He sought out the possibilities in a competitive situation, and he stayed cool and calm under pressure. He relished the stimulation of the action and energy associated with sports. He was also something of a sports fan and enjoyed following his favorite events whenever he got the opportunity. Tops on his list was Nascar.

Raymond's ability to motivate, direct and organize others made him a valuable asset to the organizations to which he contributed during his lifetime. Raymond was one who could be counted on to work hard to implement goals and required little to begin work on a specific task. Once a project was begun, Raymond had a definite methodology for seeing it through to completion. In high school, Raymond was a member of a band: Moons Kids.

Traveling, especially vacations, was another way for Raymond to apply his exceptional leadership and organizational skills. He liked exploring different places but also enjoyed designing and scheduling the trips in advance. He had real talent for developing the perfect itineraries. Favorite vacations included Disney World, Bahamas and Las Vegas.

Raymond was a lover of animals and cherished his pets. One of Raymond's favorites was Peppy a cat. They were best friends for 20 years. His family was rounded out by his dog Gizmo and cat Diesel.

When Raymond's retirement finally came in 1996, he was well prepared. He had worked out all of the details well in advance and knew exactly what he was going to do. In retirement, he found new pleasure in playing the drums and photography. Always a well-informed person, Raymond enjoyed adding to his wealth of knowledge. Retirement afforded him the time to enjoy that experience and provided one more opportunity to look ahead at what life might offer him.

Raymond passed away on September 9, 2010 at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center. He is survived by his wife Beth, his children, Sami, Jason, Shawn and Jenny, siblings Bev, Bruce, Gary, Todd and Debbie and his mom Dot. Services were held at Howard-Price Funeral Home.

Raymond B. Hanlon knew what he wanted from life and never hesitated in going after it. He could be characterized as driven individual, someone who understood the importance of achievement. Raymond was decisive and outspoken at times but was also positive and upbeat about most things. He was a leader, both intentionally and sometimes by default. If he saw that something needed to be done, he was always ready to step up and actualize, organize and implement a plan.