Obituary of Raymond B. Carlson

Raymond B. Carlson, 94, of (LSS Edgewood Community) Jamestown, NY passed away at home surrounded by his loving family on April 21, 2024. A lifelong Jamestown resident, he was born in February 1930, the only son of the late Helen and Bernhard Carlson. Ray was a graduate of Jamestown High School class of 1948 and attended NYS Agriculture and Technical Institute in Alfred, NY. He served honorably in the US Army Corp of Engineers from 1948 to1951 and was stationed in the Philippines, where he had the opportunity to appear as an extra doing military crowd control in the movie, "American Guerrilla in the Philippines", staring Tyrone Power. After serving in the Army, Ray returned to Jamestown and continued to pursue his education. He graduated from Jamestown Business School in 1954. Ray always had proficiency in numbers and this showed throughout his professional endeavors. He was an accountant and purchasing manager at Automatic Voting Machine, and advanced from purchasing manager to General VP Manager at Dahlstrom Manufacturing Company, where his father and many of his uncles worked in the plant. He was also a sales representative for Hynes Steel Company and, in semi-retirement, shared his wealth of business knowledge through various consulting endeavors. Ray was a true renaissance man for his generation. In addition to his professional pursuits, he was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying ice-skating, skiing, camping, hunting, fishing, and golfing. He continued fishing and golfing well into his later years and was very proud when he golfed his age when he was 90 years old. Ray was also a talented artist. The neighbors on Connecticut Avenue enjoyed his annual Christmas painting on the family's living room window. In later years, he took up woodcarving. His creations were all based in nature and include beautifully detailed bird carvings and paintings of various species. He had musical talents as well. The family has fond memories of him playing the accordion and ukulele as they sang around the campfire. Ray was very active in the community and was a past member of the Northwestern, PA Purchasing Agents Association and served as a director of the Jamestown Transportation Association. Very proud of his Swedish heritage, he was a member of the Vikings and Thule Lodge. He was also the Chair of the Finance Committee for SS Peter & Paul/Holy Family church as well as a member of its Celtics club and was a past member of the Norden Club. Ray and his wife, Kathleen, were also very active members of the Edgewood Community at Lutheran, Jamestown. He is survived by his wife of 70 years, Kathleen (Moynihan), as well as his three children, Cynthia (the late, Donald) Clark, Mark Carlson and Elizabeth (John) Bauman. He was a proud grandfather to William Carlson and Natalie and Michael Bauman. He is preceded in death by his parents as well as numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 am Saturday in Holy Apostles parish, Ss Peter and Paul Catholic Church. Burial will be in Holy Cross Cemetery. Friends will be received from 4-7 pm Friday in the Lind Funeral Home, where a Christian Wake Service will be led at 6:30 pm. In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully asks that any charitable donations be made on his behalf to Chautauqua Hospice and Palliative Care. You may leave words of condolence at www.lindfuneralhome.com.