Carl Ray Peay, 87, of Owensboro died Saturday April 20, 2024, at Owensboro Health Regional Hospital under the care of Hospice of Western Kentucky. Ray was born August 9, 1936, in Rochester, KY to the late George and Cordie Peay. He moved to Owensboro and worked at Johnny’s Dollar Saver and Red Front Foods where he met his late wife of 64 years, Ella Mae Daily. He retired in 1998 from a long career as a carpenter at the Murphy Miller Chair Company, now HON Corporation.
Ray was a kind and faithful man who deeply cared for his family and friends. He enjoyed woodworking, gardening, and fixing cars in his spare time. He loved to travel with his family, taking many trips with his wife, daughters, and grandchildren. One of his favorite places to visit was Gatlinburg, TN, where he loved to enjoy the nature of the Smoky Mountains. He cared for his childhood home in Rochester and helped to organize regular gatherings for the Peay family.
Ray was a faithful Christian who was a member of First General Baptist Church of Owensboro and has recently attended Yellow Creek Baptist Church. He spent many years volunteering to support church youth groups and Vacation Bible School. He also loved to attend gospel singings and travel with Ella Mae and her siblings Jim and Brenda Daily and Lony and Henrietta Thomson.
He is reunited in Heaven with his wife and parents, as well as 11 brothers and sisters.
He is survived by sister, Augusta Wells; daughters, Debbie (John) Roberts, Paige (Dennis) Young, and Heather (Bob) Clark; grandchildren Rebecca (Jon) Martin, Robert Mason (Karli) Clark, and Emmy Young; great-granddaughter, Elayna Martin; sisters-in-law, Henrietta Thomson and Brenda Daily; and many nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. on Thursday, April 25, 2024 at James H. Davis Funeral Home and Crematory. Burial will follow in Owensboro Memorial Gardens. Visitation is from 1 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday and from 11 a.m. until time of the service on Thursday at the funeral home.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you send donations to the charity that Ray and Ella Mae poured so much of their lives into, The Goodfellows Club of Owensboro, 401 Frederica Street, B203, Owensboro, KY 42301.