Ray was born on August 16, 1927 to Edmund and Delia Blanchette in Northampton, MA. He grew up in Danvers, MA. In 1947 he met the love of his life, Geraldine Marvelle, and they were married on August 22, 1948. Jerry predeceased Ray in September, 2015.
They lived in Massachusetts until 1952 when they moved to Cundy’s Harbor, ME to be closer to the ocean and rebuild the Capt. Isaiah Snow home that his mother had purchased. Jerry agreed to the move with the stipulation that if she did not like it after a year, they would return to Massachusetts. They stayed and never looked back.
Ray worked in construction and, in 1960, he joined the US Postal Service in the Brunswick Post Office. He eventually became the postman for more than 20 years on the route covering Great Island.
One of the captions in his yearbook read, “Which is it Ray; blondes, brunettes or boats?” Over the years he built 3 boats, two of them sailboats. From May to November, on every breezy day, he sailed. And all family vacations were spent cruising the coast of Maine. So, the answer was boats, and the auburn-tressed Jerry.
The Blanchettes loved to travel and when they retired in the late 80’s, the first thing they did was to travel for nine months across the United States. They also spent many winters sailing in the Caribbean on their boat Takiti. In later years, they wintered in Stuart, Florida and spent summers in Maine. They moved to
Virginia in 2008 to live with their daughter Susan and her family.
Ray was an accomplished carpenter and cabinet maker and besides his boats, his biggest project was building Jerry’s dream home in 1969. He also built four beautiful Westminster chiming mantle clocks. The first was for their new home-that clock was passed to their youngest son. The other three he built for his other children.
Ray was predeceased by his wife, his parents, his brother Norman and sister Natalie. He is survived by his children; Karen (Dennis) Campbell, their son Geoff and granddaughter, Meghan; David (Kathy) Blanchette and their sons, Jason and Justin; Susan (Bill) Smith, their children, Courtnay Courtright, Leah and Raymond and their grandchildren, Tyler, Charlotte and Wesley Courtright; and Steven (Brenda) Blanchette. He is also survived by his sisters, Pauline Schuessler and Patricia L’Heureux and several nieces and nephews.
His family wants to thank the staff of the Cottages at Gloucester House for the excellent and compassionate care they provided to Ray over the last year.
In accordance with his wishes, there will be no services. On their anniversary, his children will spread his and Jerry’s ashes off the Maine coast. He lived a good and long life, full of love and adventure and we, his children, wish him fair winds and following seas.
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