Ray passed away on July 24, 2015 in The Woodlands, Texas, after courageously fighting a three year battle with health problems and leaving a huge empty space in the Shay family. Both sons, his sister and mother were with him at the time.
Ray was born to Clarence and Alice Shay in Nurnberg, Germany on July 14, 1953. His grade school years were spent in Wichita Falls, Texas before moving to Lawton, OK for school at Eisenhower junior and senior high. He attended one year each at Oklahoma University and Oklahoma State University. In the late seventies, he was working in the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City for the National Geological Survey in the Hydrological branch researching water when he found his niche in life — computers.
The computer age offered such challenges for him that he taught himself to use the computer and the skills to do computer programming both of which allowed him to find employment in oil exploration research in Houston, Texas. He distinguished himself by writing a computer program, which would expedite the finding of oil and getting it out of the ground…a program, which is still in use. While in Houston, he met and married Barbara Ann Nance who worked in the same office; they established a home in Spring, Texas, but later Ray’s job took them to Tulsa where their two sons were born — Andrew and Matthew. Because of his ability and computer skills, he was moved to Tulsa to work in the “think tank” for the oil company to brainstorm new ideas.
Ray loved living in Texas, and it was there that he spent most of his life. He always gravitated back to Texas wherever he was. He worked contract work with various oil and gas companies and was employed by Repsol Oil Company when he developed health problems to the extent that he needed to retire.
He was a talented photographer who had an eye for using common objects and photographing them in a unique way, and he wrote a tutorial program for Photoshop and put it on computer to help new users. He enjoyed skeet shooting, guitar picking and every electronic gadget known, all of which he generously taught to others.
Ray was preceded in death by his father, Clarence R. Shay. He is survived by his sons – Matthew Shay, Andrew Shay and wife, Christina of Corpus Christi, Texas; his mother Alice Jones Shay, Lawton; a sister, Iris Shay Dates, Wichita Falls and a large group of other relatives and friends.
In lieu of flowers, a donation may be sent to cancer research.
Cheyenne Star, August 6, 2015