CHARLES-EASTERLING-Obituary

CHARLES "RAY" EASTERLING

Obituary

EASTERLING, Charles "Ray," 62, of Richmond, Va., died suddenly on Thursday, April 19, 2012. Ray graduated from Collegiate Schools in 1968, where he lettered in four sports. Ray won a scholarship to play football at University of Richmond by his sophomore year. He was voted Little All-American his senior year and was drafted in the ninth round by the Atlanta Falcons. He played defensive back for nine years. During the off-season, his greatest joy was sharing his faith in Jesus Christ with youth. After retiring in 1980, Ray succeeded in the financial services industry, a football camp for local youth and co-founding Easterling-Zacharias Health Institute. Ray is survived by his wife of 36 years, Mary Ann; his daughter, Elizabeth Easterling Perry; and son-in-law, Eric Alan Perry; two brothers and their wives: Dr. Robert Ewing Easterling and his wife, Dr. Susan Atkins; Richard Lee Easterling and wife, Anne Kincheloe Easterling. The family will receive friends at 3420 Traylor Drive, Richmond, Va. 23235 on Sunday, April 22 from 6 to 8 pm. Services of Celebration will be held at Sycamore Presbyterian Church, Midlothian, Va., Monday, April 23 at 10 am.


This obituary was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

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mary, my name is johnny jones ur 74-77 I met ray ray once in the wellness center at ur. he was with don pate. they both wre older but in excellent shape but both gentlemen. you are in my thoughts. jj

Mary Ann, we are so sorry for your loss! Although we haven't been in touch since the days when we lived in Richmond and Ray worked out at the Nautilus Fitness Center with David, we still consider you both great friends. I'll always remember how hard Ray worked to be the best! And the revival we attended with you at your church all those years ago. The subject was the beatitudes. I remember your great danes and when you fixed a dinner of venison stroganoff! Maybe one day our paths will cross...

Mary Ann, I only learned of Ray's passing from the article in SI a few days ago. I knew Ray at Collegiate, class of '68, and always admired his athletic ability and enjoyed his enthusiam for life and for his friends. He will be missed. My condolences to you and the Easterling family and my prayers for you as you continue your efforts on behalf of other players and their families.

Dear Mary Ann,
My heart has cried buckets when I read in the Daily News Record a "viewpoint" and realized you had lost your dear husband. I remember meeting you before you were married and being invited to your wedding... and attending with my friend, Sue. Had I known you all were going through all of the problems, I could have been praying for you and your family. My heart is full and my love continues to pour out for you. May God continue to encompass you with His love.

Mary Ann and family, I am so sorry that I do not know how to reach you by mail. we have been subscribing to the Richmond paper for a number of years. We still live outside of Harrisonburg since returning here in 1974 from living in Northern VA. Mary Ann, we can only hope you are surviving with the help of friends and family. Our love to you all. this is your cousin, Elaine Hartman McGann, kin to you through relatives in the Mill Creek area. We were in college with Richard and attended...

Mary Ann and Elizabeth, I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I just learned this morning from a call from another Parsons cousin in Texas. My mother and Vivian were first cousins and I have many memories of visits to Wise to visit my great aunts and uncle with my grandparents. I do not recall ever meeting Ray but from reading the condolences, I missed a wonderful opportunity. I took 2 aunts and visited Vivian not long before she sold the "big" house and had not heard that she...

Dear Ms. Easterling......I just learned of Ray's passing the other night on MSNBC and felt so sad that the game he loved so much could create so much pain and suffering. My heart goes out to you and your family. I remember Ray so fondly as he was always so kind to us underclassmen. He was a positive role model and helped me get through the practices with his work ethic and attitude, I was proud to be a DB just like Ray, although I rarely ever played the position before coming to UR. I...

Mrs. Easterling, and family, I am very sorry for your loss. I was a new recruit at A.L. Williams, now Primerica when I met Ray. Not long after I met him, I invited a small group of friends to one of A.L. Williams initial sales(recruit) meetings, at which Ray would be speaking. One of my friends I invited was playing minor league baseball for the Texas Rangers, and was having a lot of trouble adjusting to all of the pressure of professional sports, and I thought wow, if I could introduce my...

I was saddened to learn of Ray's passing. I attended U of R ('71) and enjoyed Ray's football exploits. Your family will be in my prayers. God Bless