HOULTON – Dr. Ray C. Newman, 89, passed away peacefully April 10, 2013. He was born Feb. 22, 1924, in Ithaca, N.Y.
Dr. Newman obtained his early education in Ithaca, N.Y., where he graduated from Ithaca High School in 1942; and Cornell Veterinary College in 1947. Doc went on active military duty in 1944 as a muleskinner at Fort Riley, Kan., in the 129th Calvary. He received his commission at Fort Sill in Oklahoma in 1945 and was discharged as a field artillery officer in 1946. Doc then returned to Cornell University, graduating in 1947 with a degree in veterinary medicine. After graduation Doc moved to Windsor, Vt., to work with the local veterinarian. It was there that he met his wife, Joy. They married and moved to Augusta where he worked as the state veterinarian. In 1949, he and Joy established Island Falls Veterinary Hospital. A lifelong member of the Masonic fraternity, he was a member and past master of Mechanics Lodge No. 206, A.F. & A.M., Island Falls. He was a member of Anah Shrine Temple, Bangor; York Rite and Scottish Rite bodies, obtaining the 32 degree of the Scottish Rite; high priest in Daniel Randolph Chapter No. 65b and past district deputy of 24th Masonic District. Doc was actively involved in numerous community activities: president and founding member of Maine Mountain Ski Association, chairman and member of Island Falls School Board, president of Fish and Game Club, and Whittier Congregational Church deacon and town moderator. Within his profession, he served as chairman of State Board of Examiners, president of Maine Veterinary Medical Association and president of New England Veterinary Medical Association.
He was predeceased by his wife of 59 years, Joy S. Newman; parents, Ray C. Newman and Edna Beech Newman; brother, Gerald Newman; and sister, Betty De Wolfe. He is survived by his daughter, Candace Newman Rupley and husband, Theodore, Sandra Newman, Darcy Newman, and Heather Newman and husband, George; grandchildren, Mea, Kara, Chelsey, Gretchen, Nicholas, Paige and Colin; and great-grandchildren, Hannah, Willow and Leo.
A memorial service will be held 11 a.m. Saturday, April 20, at Bowers Funeral Home, Island Falls. Interment service will be held in August. Those who wish to remember “Doc” in a special way may make a donation in his memory to Shriners Hospitals for Children, Boston, by going online at www.shrinershospitalboston.org. Online condolences may be offered to the family at
www.ripostafh.com.
Dr. Ray C. Newman
