Raymond J. Prossen

PROSSEN, Raymond (Ray) age 83, of Temple Terrace died Jan. 15, 2015 at his home after an 8 year battle with bladder cancer. He was born in Milwaukee, WI on March 16, 1931 and is preceded in death by his parents, John and Mary Prossen, and his sister, Betty Bassler. Ray graduated from Messmer H.S. in 1949 and a year later joined the Air Force at the start of the Korean War. At the age of 20 he was the youngest member of the B-26 bomber crew and completed 55 missions. After Korea his crew was sent stateside to become part of the Strategic Air Command (SAC), and these were select crews with protective targets. At the end of his service, he enrolled in Marquette University and graduated with his B.S. degree in 1959. He spent time managing general contracting and masonry businesses, and in 1969 he started his own business, R.J. Prossen Inc., a commercial contractor. While in Wisconsin he was one of the founders and first Chairman of the Wisconsin Masonry Institute and belonged to the Mason Contractors of America. In 1983 he moved his company to Tampa and continued his build and design of commercial buildings. Ray served on many boards, including bank boards in Milwaukee and Florida. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and a member of the Temple Terrace Golf Club. One of the boards he served on was at The Franciscan Center in Tampa. While there he was able to have USF create a course for credit for the students in the Architectural Program to create a gazebo plan for The Franciscan Center, but for the credit they also had to physically work on the project. Many of the subcontractors that had worked for his company donated materials and labor to the Center for this project. Of all the different boards he had served on, he enjoyed his time at the Franciscan Center the most and his association with these fine ladies and their efforts. He is survived by his loving wife of 58 years Jean (Haasch) Prossen, and 3 children, Gregg Prossen (Catherine), Kristen Prossen, and Scott Prossen (Maureen), and 7 grandchildren: Joshua (Tracey) Gomolla, Jennifer Gomolla, Erik, Kelly, Rebecca, Cameron, and Jessica Prossen. He is further survived by his brother-in-law Bernard Haasch, and numerous and special nieces and nephews. The family would like to thank the Ruby Hospice Team, especially Jasmine and Ruthie, for all their loving care to Ray. Please, in lieu of flowers, a donation to The Franciscan Center of Tampa Bay in Ray’s memory would be most appreciated. A Memorial Mass will be celebrated at 11 AM on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2015 at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 9715 N. 56th St, Temple Terrace, Florida. Interment will be held at Florida National Cemetery on January 26, 2015 at 11 AM with military honors.