Ray Fassnacht 

1926 - 2009 Ray Fassnacht was born on September 8, 1926 in Pueblo, 
Colorado. After completing high school, Ray served his country in the 
Marine Corps. Ray was always grateful to President Truman for saving 
his life; as he was on a troop ship heading for Japan when the bomb 
was dropped and thankfully the vessel quickly returned to Pearl 
Harbor. Ray was in the Victory Parade in Honolulu, Hawaii and after 
the war ended he continued his service in Guam before returning 
stateside to pursue an education. Ray attended both Colorado State and 
University of Iowa graduate school, earning a degree in chemistry, 
mathematics and agronomy. He jokingly referred to himself as 'an 
educated farmer'. After graduating from college, in 1951 he married 
Joan, an R.N. They had three children, 5 grandsons and one 
great-grandson. Ray started his career with the U.S.D.A. as a Soil 
Scientist. In 1957, he went onto Goodyear Tire and Rubber, eventually 
becoming Vice President and Managing Director of the Goodyear 
Plantations in Indonesia. The Fassnacht family spent 31 years in Asia, 
Indonesia and the Philippines. They had adventures with rebels, tigers 
and snakes, and were adopted by one of the tribes in Indonesia. Ray 
and Joan were accomplished travelers. They enjoyed globe trotting the 
world to such places as China, Vietnam, Europe, Australia, new 
Zealand, Africa, Egypt, and both South and Central America, to name 
just a few. The United States, however, was still Ray's favorite 
country. As busy as Ray was, in 1990 he decided to volunteer at 
T.L.R.C. Ray put in countless hours over the years! Visiting with 
residents, both driving and escorting on resident outings, working 
with Helping Hands, assisting with Karaoke and special events are just 
a mere sampling of some of his meaningful work here. At the same time, 
Ray also volunteered at Allenmore Hospital, The Elks, and Mt. Cross 
Lutheran church. He is survived by his wife Joan, his daughters 
Christine (Greg) Short and Alexandra Murray, his son Jon (Katie) 
Fassnacht, his grandsons Jon Fassnacht Jr., Sean Murray, Luke Klue, 
Zachary Klue and Nickolas Klue, and his great-grandson Holden Klue. 
Please make any memorial donations to the Tacoma Lutheran Home. Please 
sign our online guestbook at www.newtacoma.com .

Published in News Tribune (Tacoma) on October 18, 2009