Walter Raymond Barber

Walter Raymond Barber (Ray), age 91 of Canoga Park, California passed away on Tuesday December 5, 2022. Ray was born in Ashland, KY on August 2, 1931. He graduated from Ashland HS and enrolled at Marshall University. During high school he started dating Donna Jo Richardson and they were engaged and married in 1951.

After two years at Marshall, Ray enlisted in the US Army officer training program. During the Korean War, Ray became a Lieutenant in the Army Corp of Engineers. He was stationed just outside of Munich, Germany and trained troops in bridge demolition and Howitzer operations. After the war, Ray returned home to Kentucky.

Upon returning from Germany in 1953, Ray enrolled at the University of Kentucky. He graduated in 1957 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. Upon graduating, he accepted an aerospace job in Southern California and he and Donna moved across the country. Ray worked at Rocketdyne and Hughes Aircraft and was actively involved in satellite launches around the world, including NASA, JPL, the UK, and China. The Surveyor satellite Ray worked on is currently hanging in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.

Ray was an active family man, helping to coach little league baseball and teaching sports to his son and grandchildren. He was an avid golfer until his seventies and carded three hole-in-ones.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Walter and Ruth Barber and his brother Pete. Survivors include his wife of 71 years Donna, son Ray (Dorothy) and grandchildren Cameron and Sarah, and niece Melissa (Kevin) and her family; his brother Gene (Maggie) and his family, as well as several cousins and extended family. Helping Ray live with Alzheimer’s was a difficult journey that we couldn’t have done without help from our local Alzheimer’s organization and great-niece Stacey.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America www.alzfdn.org