Obituaries
Raymond Herbert Holmes
( March 27, 1934 - January 30, 2023 )
Ray was born in Leicester, England the only surviving child of Beatrice May Holmes and Herbert Holmes. During his childhood the family moved to York, England. After earning a degree in Mechanical Engineering and serving two years of National Service in the Royal Air Force, he was employed in the United Kingdom by Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) Fibres Division in Harrogate for the research and development of synthetic textiles (Terylene). In 1962 he accepted a three-year contract from Celanese Corporation to assist in the production of Fortrel at the then new Fiber Industries plant in Shelby, NC. He and his wife, Sylvia, chose to remain in the USA and became citizens in 1976. The family lived in Kings Mountain for 20 years before he transferred to the Hoechst/Celanese tire cord plant in Rowan County and relocated to the Lake Norman area of Denver in Lincoln County. In 2018 he and Sylvia moved to The Pines in Davidson.
Ray was a member of Davidson United Methodist Church, and he sang in several church choirs. He enjoyed golf, sailing and traveling, and he was known for his many wonderful building and landscaping projects around his homes. He was a driver for East Lincoln Home Meals and an active member of the East Lincoln Betterment Association (ELBA). He organized and served as the first president of the PROBUS club of Lake Norman.
He was preceded in death by his parents and an infant sister, Eileen, born seven years before his birth.
Ray is survived by his wife of 64 years Sylvia L. Holmes (Davidson, NC); his children: Christopher M. Holmes (Bluffton, SC); Lindsay Holmes Meakin and husband, Charles, (Amelia Island, FL); and three grandchildren: Charles James Meakin IV (Atlanta, GA); Margaret E. Meakin (Charlotte, NC) and Caroline E.W. Holmes (Washington, D.C.).
A celebration of Ray's life will be held at a later date.
Donations in his memory may be made to the East Lincoln Christian Ministries, PO Box 421, Denver NC 28037 or WDAV, PO Box 1540, Davidson NC 28036.
Ray was a member of Davidson United Methodist Church, and he sang in several church choirs. He enjoyed golf, sailing and traveling, and he was known for his many wonderful building and landscaping projects around his homes. He was a driver for East Lincoln Home Meals and an active member of the East Lincoln Betterment Association (ELBA). He organized and served as the first president of the PROBUS club of Lake Norman.
He was preceded in death by his parents and an infant sister, Eileen, born seven years before his birth.
Ray is survived by his wife of 64 years Sylvia L. Holmes (Davidson, NC); his children: Christopher M. Holmes (Bluffton, SC); Lindsay Holmes Meakin and husband, Charles, (Amelia Island, FL); and three grandchildren: Charles James Meakin IV (Atlanta, GA); Margaret E. Meakin (Charlotte, NC) and Caroline E.W. Holmes (Washington, D.C.).
A celebration of Ray's life will be held at a later date.
Donations in his memory may be made to the East Lincoln Christian Ministries, PO Box 421, Denver NC 28037 or WDAV, PO Box 1540, Davidson NC 28036.
Posted on 31 Jan 2023
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125 Dave Warlick Drive
Lincolnton, NC 28092
704/735-2521