Ray Valdez (Jose Remigio Valdez) 

Did you see those light blue sparklers at 5:45 a.m. New Year’s Day? That was our beloved husband, father, and grandfather saying his goodbyes. Ray Valdez (Jose Remigio Valdez) passed away at his home surrounded by his family on Jan. 1, 2016, at the age of 83. Ray is survived by his loving wife of 50 years, Carolyn Powell Valdez. They were married on Jan. 22, 1965, in Elko, Nevada. Ray’s legacy lives on through his sons, Todd (Deanna) of Waterford, California, Rick (JoAnne) of Stansbury Park, Utah, B.A. (Angela) of Tooele, Utah, and Paul (Kim) of Berea, Kentucky; 14 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; his sister Anna Giron, many nieces and nephews, and his faithful companion: his dog Charlie. Ray was born in Rio Arriba, New Mexico on July 21, 1932. He graduated from West High School in 1950 and joined the U.S Army, serving in the Korean War. Ray earned his cabinetry and building inspection certifications from Utah Trade Technical College. He worked at the Tooele Army Depot as a mobile equipment inspector. He enjoyed camping, fishing, coaching boxing and baseball with all of his boys and many other youth in the Grantsville/Tooele community. He is preceded in death by his parents Alejandro Valdez and Ramonita Pacheco Valdez; his sisters Susie Esquibel and Bernice Jones; his brother Joe Garcia and his grandson Adam Valdez. The family would like to extend a special thank you to Canyon Home Care & Hospice staff for all they did for Ray — Barbara Herrera, Patty Greigo, Cherylynn Miller, Ellen Rojas, Guy Evans, Patty Bringard and Sharon Ekins. Funeral services will be held on Thursday, Jan. 7 at 11 a.m. at the LDS Chapel located at 428 S Hale St, Grantsville, with a viewing one hour prior to services. Interment will follow at Grantsville City Cemetery. Services entrusted with Didericksen Memorial, 435-277-0050.