Raymond Faire

Raymond Faire, 93, of Cape Girardeau, died peacefully Sunday, July 3, 2016, at his home surrounded by his family.

He was born on April 7, 1923, in Deventer, Mo., the son of Herschel and Emelene Patrick Faire.

Raymond and Thelma Forrester were married March 25, 1945. Out of this union came a son, Gary R. Faire, who survives. Thelma died in October of 1979. He later married Effie Dorris in Jackson, Mo., on March 14, 1980.

He was the oldest of 12 children and grew up in Mississippi County, Mo. (34 Corner). He attended Lower Crosnoe Elementary School at 34 Corner. He was a 1940 graduate of East Prairie High School.

He worked on the family farm and went to work for Stony’s Farm in Wolf Island, Mo., after high school graduation.

He was drafted into the U.S. Army during World War II in 1945 and served until 1947. After his military service he moved back home to Wolf Island and later moved to East Prairie and worked at Budget Laundry.

In 1950, he moved to Anna to work for Loomis Brother’s where he installed laundry and dry cleaning equipment. He went to work for Lewis Brothers Bakeries in Anna in 1957 and retired in 1985 after 28 years of service.

He then took on the challenge of building his and Effie’s home in Benton, Mo., where he did all the work, being self-taught in many areas.

He came out of retirement and worked for Riverside Lumber, Pocahontas Lumber, Kay’s Merchandise and Lowe’s. He had to again retire for the last time due to his health.

He was a member of Lynwood Baptist Church and a former member of the First Pentecostal Church in Cape Girardeau.

He was extremely talented and self-taught in many areas, such as radio repair, general electrician, plumber, carpenter, certified welder and was a millwright most of his life.

His hobbies included reading, gardening, traveling and square dancing, collecting antique tools, working with the Explorer Scouts, playing baseball from the age of 6 to 32 and teaching the fundamentals of baseball to younger kids.

Survivors include his wife, Effie of Cape Girardeau; a son, Gary R. (Linda) Faire of Jonesboro; two brothers, Fred S. (Betty) Faire of Eldon, Mo., and Herschel “Glenn” Faire of Jackson, Mo.; three sisters, Shelby J. Wood of Hornback, Tenn., Betty (Howard) Douglas of Scott City, Mo., and Faye (Gary) Waterhouse of Kansas City, Mo.; three grandsons, Raymond “Doug” (Barb) Faire of Northbrook, Ontario, Canada, Brian “Scott” (Lori) Faire of Cape Girardeau and Jerome (Tasha) Faire of Jonesboro; great-grandchildren Trace and Mariah Faire of Jonesboro; step-great-grandchildren Bobby Brown and Shana Dillon of Montreal, Quebec; step-great-great-grandson Charles John Douglas Raymond; numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his first wife, Thelma; three brothers, Delbert, William and John Thomas “JT” Faire; and three sisters, Lucille Rhodes, Marion “Ruth” Clifft and Dorothy Wilson.

Visitation will be Thursday, today, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Ford and Sons Mt. Auburn Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau.

Funeral services will be Friday, July 8, at 11 a.m. at the funeral home, with the Rev. Mark Anderson officiating.

Burial with full military honors will follow at Fairmount Cemetery.

Memorials can be given to Lynwood Baptist Church.

Online condolences can be shared at www.fordandsonsfuneralhome.com.