Raymond Simpson
 February 17, 1937 - December 9, 2021 Raymond Simpson, 84, of North Aurora, passed away on Thursday, December 9, 2021, at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, IL. Raymond was born on February 17, 1937, the son of Paul Viczai and Dorothy Simpson. He was united in marriage to Paulette E. Ondrla on September 10, 1960 in Berwyn, IL. Ray’s life had a humble, rugged beginning. After the loss of his Father when he was a baby, Ray was raised in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago at the end of the Great Depression, by his single Mother and Grandmother. Some of his earliest memories were of taking his wagon and walking with his Grandmother to the outdoor produce markets to gather any leftover fruits and vegetables, while his Mother worked as a barmaid. His favorite snack was a slice of bread with an abundant spread of lard. Through these cost cutting savings, Ray always had enough to eat, and even attended a good Catholic grade-school. His favorite free time adventures were of climbing the towering mounds of coal at the Pilsen power plant to play king of the hill with his friends, and riding his bicycle from one end of Chicago to the other for the Cubs and Sox games. Ray and his friends even had a rather elaborate underground fort beneath the streets of Pilsen, complete with secondhand furniture. Ray also had fond memories of his time as a Boy Scout, where he found a father figure in the Scout Master. Although Ray was a strong and energetics boy, he was afflicted throughout his childhood with appendicitis, polio, and a near death experience from a kidney cyst (from which he retained vivid unconscious memories of a dark tunnel, a bright light, and a voice that told him it wasn’t his time). As the years of Ray’s youth came to a close, his young adulthood had a bumpy beginning as well. In order to help his Mother with the bills and earn some spending money for himself, he left high school before graduating. Though after a brief employment in a factory assembly line, the tedium and the evident long term health consequences of his superior co-workers brought him back to high school, where he graduated only a year after his class. He even went on to junior college and was on the school football team, when Ray met the love of his life at a neighborhood soda shop. His wife to be had been visiting her godparents when their daughter and Paulette decided to go to the soda shop. They met briefly, but Ray was interested enough to pursue, and although he knew little about Paulette, he knew the godparents daughter and acquired a phone number. After several phone dates, Ray and Paulette eventually got together for their first of many memorable dates at Riverview Amusement Park. They also shared many exciting ice-level dates at the old United Center, watching legendary Blackhawks on the road to the Stanley Cup led by Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita. Ray eventually had to forgo college, to help his Mother with the bills and to pay for all the dating. Though now that he was a high school graduate he found a good entry level job with Illinois Bell & Telephone as a delivery truck driver. Through a recruiting program at Illinois Bell, Ray also enlisted in the Marine Reserves just before the US became involved in the Vietnam War. Bell compensated his salary during boot camp and his remaining obligations, until he was honorably discharged. After two years of dating and a one year engagement Ray and Paulette were married, which his own Mother claimed was the best thing that ever happened to him. Two years after their wedding, just before the birth of their first child, Ray and Paulette had already saved enough for a down payment on their first home, and purchased a two flat less than a mile from Paulette’s childhood home. Within seven years, they had 3 more children. and were a family of six living in a three bedroom 2 bathroom apartment, and they needed more space inside and outside. Ray continued to work hard at bell, often 60 hours a week, yet still found time to play with his young children. Picnics in the park on his lunch breaks, teaching them to ride bikes for family bike rides after work. During the blizzard of 67, he built an 8 foot tall slide out of hand shoveled snow in the backyard that all the neighborhood kids enjoyed. Family vacations in the summer to anywhere that had a swimming pool, and room to play. He was promoted from Bell’s shipping department to field technician, splicing cables in the manholes and telephone poles, working out of an office 30 minutes west of their home. In order to provide their kids more space to play and get closer to work, they purchased their second home, a three bedroom two bath ranch-style house on an acre of land in Naperville. Continuing to work hard and play hard, Ray built 2 large above ground pools from scratch with the neighbor, who also had 4 children approximately the same ages. He coached Baseball and Softball teams for several years, as long as one of his kids was on the team. Even won a city championship! When air hockey became popular, though too expensive for the budget, he built a large custom table that was way better than any store models. He also was a Scout Master for several years, and hosted several pool parties for kids teams, troops, and friends, with the help of Paulette. The yearly vacations also continued and became more enhanced and expensive as the budget increased. Dude-Ranches, where there was horseback riding, and a trip by plane to Disney World! This all kept Ray plenty busy for almost 20 yrs, until all his kids had grown and moved out, and he retired from Bell with full pension at only 50 years old. Before retiring Ray had climbed the corporate ladder as far as he could go, to be a Business Phone System Sales and Installation Representative. So immediately after retirement, when AT&T and Bell dissolved, he saw an opportunity to start his own business doing exactly what he had done for Bell. Employing co-workers, his Kids, and Grandkids throughput the years, whenever he needed help or they needed work. In his free time he helped his kids with home projects of almost every nature. Being a Do It-Yourself man all his life had made him a master of many trades, especially painting, plumbing, roofing and handyman. 4 years into retirement, when his son needed help raising his first Grandson, he immediately stepped up and adopted him. Though not as physically active as he had been in his younger days, he had a much larger budget, and was able to provide many opportunities for education, entertainment, and travel. 12 years of Catholic School. Every sport his Grandson wanted to play, including private lessons or training camps. Numerous video games and even more extravagant vacations. A Disney Cruise, an all inclusive resort vacation in Mexico, and he even purchased a time-share, all for the entire family! In 2008 shortly after Rocky Wirtz had taken over the Blackhawks and Toews & Kane were drafted, Ray had a good feeling about the team and convinced Paulette to invest in Season Tickets that the whole family shared for the next 10 years and 3 Stanley Cups! The only hobby he started for himself in retirement was Beekeeping. Even then, guess who he gave the honey to? All his life Ray was a Family Man. From the time he could start working to help his Mother, and throughout the 61 years of his marriage until his passing, Ray unceasingly cared for and supported his family. Regardless of the circumstances or his own personal convictions, he never hesitated to help his family. His ability for self-sacrifice and unconditional love serves as an inspiration. He is sorely missed and greatly appreciated by his entire family, who were all able to visit him in the hospital for his peaceful passage. Raymond is survived by his loving wife, Paulette E. Simpson; his four children, Paul Simpson, Pete (Lori) Raymond was preceded by his parents and his granddaughter, Samantha (Cody) Johnson-Zitoun. A memorial Mass will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, December 22, 2021, at Blessed Sacrament |
