Raymond P. Katchmar, 75, of Algonquin, IL died peacefully February 6, 2024 at JourneyCare Hospice of Barrington.
Ray was born in Streator, IL on March 17, 1948 to Raymond and Elizabeth (nee Faw) Katchmar. Ray attended Streator High School and remained a proud lifetime supporter of the Streator Bulldogs! After graduating from NIU, Ray and Elana (nee Cawley) married and moved to Palatine, IL. Soon afterwards, Ray went to serve in the US Army, working in the payroll department at the Pentagon.
After serving, Ray found his dream job at Panasonic where he worked until his retirement. In his career, he traveled from coast to coast and traveled often to Japan. Ray excelled at sales and enjoyed a lengthy career all the while building and maintaining great relationships with his peers. His motto was “Sales and service are important, but people are more important.” After his retirement, Ray continued his education by passing the Series 6 test and went on to work at Chase Bank in Lake in the Hills as a licensed banker.
Ray was a great golfer and an excellent bowler. He enjoyed fishing and told many fish stories. He played cribbage, Scrabble and snooker! His summer joy was cooking on the grill. He frequented all the local pizza places and ranked his top 5 frozen pizzas. He traveled two counties north for chicken wings, and was frequently bribed with ice cream. Whenever Ray went back to Streator, he had to patronize two of his favorites, Steve’s Donuts and Joe’s Pizza.
Ray was a loving husband, father, brother and grandfather. He was a friend to many and will be missed by all. Ray is survived by his wife Elana; his sons Brent (Ana) Katchmar and Pat Katchmar; granddaughters Kayleigh and Ava; sisters Terri Gould and Beth (John) Theiss; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents Ray and Elizabeth Katchmar, in-laws Edward and Napua Cawley, and brothers-in-law Brad Gould and Henry Cawley.
Visitation will be Saturday, March 2, 2024 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm with a service at 12:30 pm at DeFiore Funeral Home-10763 Dundee Road, Huntley.
In lieu of flowers, you can donate in Ray’s memory to ArtHelpsHeal, www.arthelpsheal.org. ArtHelpsHeal.org is a 501(c)3 that provides quality art materials, lessons, books and a website for hospitalized teens.
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My condolences to the Katchmars and the Cawleys. Elana and Ray are/were my godparents and were there as I grew up. I will always remember Ray as the constant jokester. His joke delivery was so straight that most people thought he was being serious, not joking. However, it was all a ruse to see how long he could lure you into the joke for. I guess that is why he loved fishing too! Ray made positive impacts on lives near and far. He will be missed!
Our thoughts go out to Elana, Brent and Patrick at the loss of Ray. Ray and I were room mates at NIU for 3 years and extended our friendship long after college. Barb introduced Ray to Elana and we shared many happy days with them as a couple. Lots of fond memories....
My most sincere condolences to you and your family. I remember the years I worked with Ray so fondly. Can't be easy working with a bunch of 20 somethings every day. I will always remember his love of golf and generosity with each of us. God's peace to you Ray!
Beth, I am so sorry to hear this. I am not in town on the 2nd but know you are in my thoughts. Ann
My sincere sympathies go to the Katchmar and Cawley families. Ray was a key player in both. Golf, bowling even fishing with Ed Cawley Sr. We know him because Ray’s roommate at NIU was dating his future wife, Elana’s friend there. The girls visited and often stayed in my apartment. My sister Janet Mellor worked with Elana and practically shared a birthday with her. We were all Best Friends Forever In 1971 Ray and Elana were married. It was 104 degrees in an un air-conditioned church. It was hot and so were they. Elana with her long, beautiful hair and Ray with his Burt Reynold’s sideburns. Ray golfed and bowled with my husband, Scott, and the 4 of us played pinochle. Girls cheated. Boys won. Ray, the world traveler and international salesman, was just plain silly. He insisted that your knees burned because they were closer to the sun. He graded my car parking skills and never gave me more than a C+. He helped pull off the best surprise birthday party ever by pretending he had car trouble in a Down-the-Hatch parking lot. When I was as finally old enough (55) to learn to play golf, Ray was willing to take me and a couple of “old” friends on. Ray worked his whole life until he passed because he loved to socialize with people. Everyone in every nursing facility he stayed knew Ray. He was modest and never bragged about money nor his stint at the Pentagon. Ray could sell anything to anyone because people loved him. It is impossible to imagine that he is gone because Ray was always there when you needed him.
My thoughts to all who Ray loved and that loved him; he was good people. I worked for Ray as a young engineer just starting out, back in the 1993 timeframe. Ray took me under his wing, and taught me life lessons that have stayed with me all these years. I was talking about my Panasonic experience this morning, and all the good, patient people I met; I am sorry to find that I missed my chance to tell Ray thanks for all he did for me all those years ago. His hair in the picture is a little grayer now, but other than that, he looks like the same Ray that I remember.
I am so sorry I did not learn about Ray’s death in time to express my condolences in person at his service. My late husband John and I enjoyed Elana and Ray’s friendship and hospitality over the years beginning when I worked with Elana at City Products Corporation. What a wonderful sense of humor Ray had and what a gracious and welcoming host he was. I count myself among the many I am sure who will miss him.