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Ida Rayford Obituary
Ida was born on April 7, 1947, to the late Sylvester and Pauline (Street) Fitts in Marshall County, Mississippi. In December, 1988 she married her soulmate Henry L. Rayford Jr. who preceded her in death on July 14, 2022.
Ida demonstrated a strong affinity for her professional role, expressing enthusiasm for automotive painting and repair, alongside her passion for motorcycles, and she loved watching Western television programming. Ida will be truly missed by her family and friends.
Following a distinguished career, she retired from General Motors after 44 and a half years of service. Her tenure included roles within the automotive and paint departments located in Defiance, Ohio. Her hobby was her love for cars.
She leaves to cherish her memory her two daughters, Antoinette Fitts and Jaocrece (Fred) Buford and four grandchildren, Dominique Kelsaw, Maurice Jones Jr., Fred Buford Jr. and Jasmine Buford, and ten great-grandchildren. She had six sisters, Airlean Fitts, Ivy (Jerry) Stephenson, Teresa Stewart, Willie Seal (Peter) Booker, Berdotha (Jonnie) Brooks and Annette Fitts, and four brothers, Dewayne (Shirley) Fitts, Silous (Angela) Fitts, Sylvester (Felicia) Fitts and Pernell (Margie) Fitts, sisters-in-law, JoAnn Rayford and Leatrice Rayford, brothers-in-law, Larry Rayford, Eddie Rayford, Kennedy Rayford, Clifton (Sharon) Rayford, Rene (Ivy) Rayford, and Joseph (Jean) Rayford. She also leaves behind a close friend Sandy McKeen, special nephew and niece Lewis and Angie, and a host of nieces, nephews, aunt, uncles and many good friends.
She was preceded in death by her sisters, Velice Fitts and Mary Dell Fitts, and her lovely mother and father-in-law, Henry and Rudy (Dockery) Rayford, and sister-in-law, Francis Mae Rayford.
Visitation will be held on Friday, October 31, 2025, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Schaffer Funeral Home in Defiance. A funeral service will follow at 12 p.m. at the funeral home with Apostle O. Michael Smith officiating. Ida will be laid to rest at Riverside Cemetery.
Memorials are suggested to Boys and Girls Clubs of America, or Le Bonheur Children's Hospital. Online condolences can be given at www.Schafferfh.com.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
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