Ray Alden

ALDEN, Ray, 85, former Executive Director of the Brookline (Mass.) Taxpayers Association, passed away August 29, 2008 in Richmond after a short illness. He was born Horatio Alden Jr. in Boston, Mass., on November 28, to Horatio Alden, originally of Camden, Maine, and Evelyn Pike Alden, originally of Lubec, Maine. He grew up in Brookline, Mass., and lived and worked in the Boston area for most of his life. He maintained a lifelong interest in the history and culture of coastal Maine, spent parts of many summers in Camden, was perhaps the only Virginia subscriber to the Camden Herald, and restored a family home there. He collected art and artifacts related to regional and family history, and donated several pieces to the Maine Maritime Museum. His legacy of family artifacts will be treasured, and his family stories will be passed down to future generations. He served in the U.S. Army Air Force from 1943 to 1946 in the Pacific Theatre. He graduated from Tufts University in 1952 with a degree in Art Education, taught both children and adults, and spent several years as director of the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine. He drew and painted all of his life, capturing scenes from wherever he lived, from his travels around the United States and to Europe, and especially the landscapes of Maine. At the Brookline Taxpayers Association, he took pride in building an organization that represented all sectors of the community. The work reflected his lifelong passion for fairness and good governance, and he never hesitated to take up an effort to right a wrong, clear an injustice, or make government work a little better for everyone. A Richmond resident since 1992, he was active in numerous civic efforts, and put in many hours as a volunteer tutor at Greene Elementary School. He most enjoyed working in small groups to get children past difficulties with reading and writing. He was preceded in death by his brother, Henry; and is survived by his sister, Elizabeth Alden Bowers and husband, Don, of Richmond, their three children, Cathy of Chicago, Illinois, James of Falmouth, Mass., and Ken of El Cerrito, Calif.; and devoted friend, Richard Ryan of Richmond. A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, September 20, at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Richmond, 1000 Blanton Ave., in Richmond. The family suggests that memorial tributes take the form of contributions to The First U-U Church of Richmond with "Micah Initiative at Greene Elementary School" on the memo line.
This obituary was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.