Mr. Raymond "Ray" L. and Betty I. (Magner) Clifford

Mrs. Betty I. Clifford, 78, of Fayetteville, North Carolina passed away Monday, February 1, 2016 in Fayetteville.

Mr. Raymond L. “Ray” Clifford, 84, formerly of Fayetteville, North Carolina, passed away peacefully amongst his loved ones at 3:45 a.m., Saturday, November 16, 2019 in Galesburg.

Betty was born December 16, 1937 in Beverly, West Virginia to Mr. Silas and Agnes Mae (Amos) Magner.

Ray was born March 3, 1935 in Akron, Ohio to Mr, William L. and Marguerite (Brown) Clifford. He married the love of his life, Betty I. Magner, on August 7, 1974.

They are survived by his son William “Bill” (Jennifer) Clifford of Galesburg, Ray’s sisters Shirley McCartney of Akron, Ohio and Marjoreen Long of Canton, Ohio, Betty’s sisters Dessie (Daniel) Desori of Beverly, West Virginia and Mona (Squire) Kittle of Millcreek, West Virginia, five grandchildren Matthew VanWinkle, Andrew VanWinkle, Amber (Sean) Hatfield, Emilie Clifford and Leah Clifford, and four great-grandchildren Jude, Leah, Jocelynn and Jaydenn.

They are preceded in death by their parents, three of Ray’s brothers Robert Clifford, Harold Clifford, and Carl Clifford, Ray’s sister Kathleen Clifford, and Betty’s two brothers Norman Magner and Samuel Magner.

Betty was raised and educated in Beverly, West Virginia. She graduated from Beverly High School in 1957. Betty went on to work many jobs after high school, she especially enjoyed working at Woolworth’s Cafeteria in Columbus, Ohio. It was while working at Woolworth’s that Betty met her husband, Ray. Betty also enjoyed working as a Cake Decorator at Kroger where she was able to decorate her son and daughter-in-law’s wedding cake. In her free time Betty loved bowling (winning many trophies) gardening, painting, sewing, and making ceramic sculptures.  Betty was an active and devout Jehovah's Witness. Together, Betty and Ray loved traveling across the country and took delight in socializing with friends. They enjoyed playing games of all kinds, the day Grandma dominated at Wii bowling is still remembered fondly.

Ray was raised and educated in Akron, Ohio; graduating from Akron Central Senior High School in 1953. After high school, he received Associates in Applies Science in Criminal Justice from Fayetteville Technical Institute of Fayetteville, North Carolina. Ray retired from United States Air Force in September 1970 as Technical Sergeant.  His service took him around the world, including the wars in Korea and Vietnam. Of particular note, after performing emergency repairs on an "unrepairable" Air Force One in Vietnam, he received an Air Force Commendation Medal and orders to the 89th Military Airlift Wing at Andrews AFB for the maintenance team for Air Force One and other special mission aircraft. Ray enjoyed being a member of the VFW Post #00670 and Post #3332, American Legion Post #0032 and Disabled American Veterans Post #46.

Cremation will be accorded. The family will be receiving friends and other family on behalf of Ray and Betty on Friday, November 29, 2019 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at Hinchliff-Pearson-West Funeral Directors and Cremation Services Galesburg Chapel. Memorials may be donated to the Gordon Behrents Senior Center. Burial will be at Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery with military honors.

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