Ray Gillen

Ray Gillen was born April 26, 1939, in New York City where he grew up on Leroy Street. He graduated from Lady of Pompeii Elementary School and Harran High School.

Ray joined the Air Force in 1958 and served in England where he met Maureen Hooper. They were married on December 20, 1958. Ray and Maureen lived in England and then Germany for a short time. When they returned to the States they first lived in Texas before coming back to New York in 1960 when he was discharged after serving in the Air Force for 3 years. For the next two years he served in the Reserves.

In his younger days Ray enjoyed participating in the sport of boxing at the Greenwich House in New York City and also made two parachute jumps that he was very proud of. Ray's reserved personality made a change with the birth of his grandchildren. He would do anything for them including playing games or dancing around the room if his grandsons asked him to.

He started working for Bell Labs in 1962 that began a career in the communications industry that would last for over 40 years. During this time he worked for Bell Labs, AT&T, TCG & XO Communications. Work was Ray's passion and he always gave 100%. His work ethic was impeccable and his "can do" attitude spilled over to the people that worked with and for him. He was an expert in his field and received many awards in his career that he preferred not to draw attention to. Everyone went to Ray for answers that he was always willing to share and always cheerfully. He went out of his way for anyone that needed help both at work and in his personal life and won the respect of his colleagues and friends. EVERYBODY LOVES RAY!

HEY PAL was Ray's favorite hello to all who knew him. Most people thought (at first) that this greeting was directed personally to them until they found out that this familiar phrase was used when greeting all his pals!

Ray died at his home on July 16, 2003 at the age of 64. He is survived by his wife Maureen, three children Sara, Paula and Danny, three grandchildren Vincent, Matthew and Kenneth and his sister Pat Dawson.

Please help keep the memory of Ray alive by signing his guest book where you can share your memories of Ray.