Raymond Harrison Merchant, known affectionately as Ray to his friends and family, embarked on his final road trip on September 27, 2024. Born on a sunny day in Kalamazoo, Michigan, back in 1957, Ray decided after 67 years of adventure that it was time to check out the great gig in the sky, leaving behind a legacy of laughter, music, and a mean backhand in Ping Pong.

Ray's life was a symphony played on his beloved Gibson guitar, with each chord representing the love he had for his family. His wife, Deborah Merchant, was his lifelong duet partner. Together with their son Timothy and his wife Amber, they created a harmony that resonated throughout Grand Junction, Michigan. Ray's band of siblings, Susan and Kurt King, Linda and James Kaster, Sharon Beebe, and Steven Merchant, added their own notes to this melody, while his three grandchildren, Dylan Dekam, Connor Hammond, and McKayla Maynard Merchant, and two great-grandchildren, Lanessa Hammond and Domynic Phillips, danced to the rhythm of his life. Though he played his final note, his music lives on through them.

A graduate of Portage Northern with some college under his belt, Ray was a man who knew the value of education – even if most of his learning was done in the university of life, behind the wheel of his truck as an independent contractor. His work took him to places far and wide, but he always returned to his first love, Kalamazoo, where he was born and eventually drew his last breath.

Ray's heart may have given out, but his spirit never did. He battled the triple threat of Coronary Artery Disease, Carotid Stenosis, and Congestive Heart failure like a true champ – and speaking of champs, nobody could beat him at the Ping Pong table. His wicked sense of humor was as legendary as his forehand smash.

In his spare time, when he wasn't strumming on his guitar or engaging in epic table tennis battles, Ray loved to scrap. He was always on the move, fulfilling responsibilities with a laugh, as he'd say, "I'm off to do what I have to before I can do what I want to!" His interests were as eclectic as his taste in music, but his heart was always with his Gibson, his family, and his undying love for a good joke.

As Ray would have wanted it, let's remember him with a smile and a chuckle. In the words of the great comedian Robin Williams, "You're only given a little spark of madness. You mustn't lose it." Ray certainly never lost his, and for that, we are all grateful.

Ray is preceded in death by his parents, Carl and Faye Merchant, his brother David James Merchant, and his son Raymond Edward Merchant. But let's not dwell on the sadness, for Ray would have none of that. Instead, he'd likely quip, "Don't take life too seriously, nobody gets out alive."

To his many nieces and nephews, Ray was the fun uncle with a joke always at the ready. To his friends, a confidant with a rhythm in his step. And to the world, he was a man who reminded us that life is not about the destination, but the joy of the ride.

Ray's passing was in the same town that gave him life, Kalamazoo, MI. It's as if he took a round trip ticket, and what a trip it was. As we say goodbye to Raymond Harrison Merchant, let's do so with the laughter and love he would have wanted. After all, as he'd often jest, "I'm not here for a long time, I'm here for a good time!"

So, raise your guitar picks, Ping Pong paddles, and scrap metal in honor of Ray, a man who never missed a beat, never dropped a ball, and never passed up a chance to make us smile. Rock on, Ray, rock on.