William Ray (Billy) Styons

William Ray (Billy) Styons, 86, of Raleigh, passed away on February 25, 2022. Billy was born in Plymouth September 16, 1935. He was the son of the late William Charlie Styons and Catherine Phelps Styons. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Pattie McLamb Styons, and his sister, Ellie Styons Jones.

He is survived by his son, William Russell (Rusty) Styons and Valerie Malloy; granddaughter, Kathryn Styons, husband Julian De Phillips, and daughter in law, Tommie Ann Styons; great granddaughters, June and Helen De Phillips; and sister, Katherine (Kathy) Styons Waters and husband, George P. Waters; Also surviving are nephews, Jody Jones and Phillip Waters and husband, Anthony Nuzio.

He was known by many names: Bill, Punchy, Billbo, Dad and probably his favorite, Papa. He grew up in Plymouth and graduated from Plymouth High School in 1953 where he was an outstanding athlete.

During high school he worked at Womble’s Drug Store in downtown Plymouth. After high school, he attended East Carolina University and then joined the Army. Billy was stationed in Hawaii and was even an extra in a war movie filmed while he was there.

Then, serious about getting an education, he enrolled in NC State University and graduated with a B. S. in Recreation and Park Administration in 1961. He was an avid State fan and hardly ever missed a game.

He worked for 32 years at NC State as the Director of the Cashier's Office. He especially loved the orientation sessions and always looked for students from Plymouth. While in college he worked at Rex Hospital as a clerk in the emergency room. In his opinion, there was only ONE university and ONE hospital.

Billy was a hero to his sisters, Ellie and Kathy, and always made his parents proud. Billy was taught integrity and character as well as a strong work ethic, traits he practiced throughout his life. Raleigh became his second home and many of the major events of his life happened there “inside the Beltline.”

He was a doting father and grandfather. He was a loyal friend and maintained relationships with many of his high school friends throughout his life. He loved golf and especially sharing the game with his son, Rusty. He loved his family, and they are all close and love Billbo stories starting with, “to make a long story short.” Some of his favorite times are when the family got together often reminiscing about his parents (Cat and Pa) and his days growing up. Many of these tales were enhanced by the family drink, the Whiskey Sour.

Billy’s Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, March 5, 1:00 pm at the NC State University Club, 4200 Hillsborough St. Raleigh, NC 27606. You are invited to come and share your own Billy stories.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to NC State University online at giving.ncsu.edu.

Services provided by Brown-Wynne, 300 Saint Mary's St., Raleigh.