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 1928 - 2008 (80 years)
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| Name |
Ray James Osborne [1] |
| Birth |
31 Jan 1928 |
East Rainelle, Greenbrier County, WV  [2, 3] |
| Gender |
Male |
| Death |
2 Jul 2008 |
Beckley, Raleigh County, WV [2] |
- Obituary -- Ray James Osborne
RUPERT — Cpl. Ray J. Osborne, 80, of Rupert, passed away July 2, 2008, in Beckley following a long illness.
Born Jan. 31, 1928, in East Rainelle, where he grew up, he was the son of the late Louris James and Bessie Jane Siers Osborne.
He spent most of his childhood working odd jobs for just pennies. He picked up rocks when they fell off the trucks hauling in and out of Snake Island and also picked coal up off the railroad tracks when it fell out of the train cars. Both of these only paid pennies a week.
When he was 17 years old, a marine recruiter was traveling around the area and Ray signed up; however, as most of you know, you have to be 18 years old to join. His mom found out and told him he was going to wait. Eighteen days after his 18th birthday, his mom took him to Huntington, W.Va., to enlist. Ray began active service the very next day.
After training, he was sent overseas to North China to serve on post WWII occupation duty. He served with the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, that were stationed as the Marine Rail Guard. Their duties were to protect the railways and trains from hostile forces. His battalion saved several trains and many civilians in the year and a half that they were there. On one occasion, Ray had to hold off an entire band of hostile forces while his comrades boarded a train to their safety. He later received a medal of valor for this.
After serving his 2-year term, he was honorably discharged and came home. Ray earned his pilot's license and became a flight instructor. He later worked in the mines and earned his electrician's license and eventually was able to open up his own electrical repair shop in Rupert. Later, he taught Electronics at both Greenbrier West and Greenbrier East before retiring in Rupert.
In addition to his parents, Ray was preceded in death by two sisters, Rosealee Arentz and Stella King.
Those left to cherish his memory are his loving wife of 59 years, two daughters and two grandchildren.
Graveside service will be 2 p.m., Sunday, July 6, at the Walker Cemetery in Russellville with Pastor Jay Talbott officiating. The Ansted VFW will perform military rites.
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| Person ID |
I12331 |
Crane Genealogy |
| Last Modified |
22 Mar 2023 |
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| Sources |
- [S1868] Obituary, Smith, Beulah Carr (Withrow), (11 Mar 1993, Page 7.), 19 Sep 2019 (Reliability: 2).
- [S1869] Obituary, OSBORNE, Ray James, (4 Jul 2008, Page 6), 11 Sep 2019 (Reliability: 2).
- [S944] Draft Registrations Cards - WW II, 12 Sep 2019 (Reliability: 3).
Ray James Osborne
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