SOUTH PARIS — Raymond Rudolph Farr Jr., of West Paris, died on Thursday evening, March 15, at the Maine Veterans’ Home in South Paris, where he had resided for the past nine years.
He was born June 7, 1923, in West Paris, the oldest of four children and the only son of Raymond R. Farr Sr. and Arlene Marie (Rogers) Farr. He attended and graduated from West Paris schools. At the age of 12, he was “farmed out” and went to live across town on the farm of Harlan and Lena Redding, returning home during his senior year of high school.
After graduating school, he worked for a year at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard before enlisting in the Army Air Force. He spent the next three years as a clerk in a photographic technical unit serving in Papua, New Guinea, the Philippines, and the occupation of Japan.
Shortly after returning home in January of 1946 he went to work at Penley’s Mill, where he soon became the foreman of the assembly, packaging, and shipping departments. He stayed for nearly 50 years, retiring in his early 70s only to go back on a consulting basis for a couple more years. Many people worked for “Junior” through those years. He was a lifelong hunter and fisherman.
In that first year after WWII, he met Barbara Eloise McAlister, when she waitressed at Barjo’s in Norway and on March 30, 1947, they were married in West Paris by the Rev. Eleanor B. Forbes. Their nearly 61 years of marriage resulted in the births of five children, nine grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren and six great-great-grandchildren to date. Barbara predeceased him on Jan. 26, 2008.
He is survived by children Donald W. Farr and wife, Andrea, Brenda L. Smith and husband, Raymond, Nancy L. Hersey and husband, Brad, Kevin R. Farr and wife, Dolores, and John F. Farr; grandchildren Tammy L. Hadley, Troy D. Farr and wife, Vickie, Virginia E. Knight and husband, Dan, Raynah L. McFarland and husband, Wayne, Stacey A. Morrison, Raymond W. Smith and wife, Rose, Merredith J. Hersey and partner, Vincent Pike, Rebecca D. Hebert and husband, Brad, and Joshua J. Farr; and great-grandchildren Cody S. Hadley, Dylan J. Hadley, Samantha G. Loring, Courtney R. Tuomi and husband, Adam, Christine M. Farr, Ashley L. Lepage and husband, Normand, James M. Lanois, Amanda C. Mendoza and husband, Richard, Katlin M. Heath, Kyle A. Morrison, Dakota R. Morrison, Raven S. Morrison, Alexa M. Stigman, Emily R. Pike, Taylor L. Pike and Robert V. Pike; great-great-grandchildren Isaac R. Tuomi, Jachob C. Lanois, Aydin R. Lanois, Ethan D. Mendoza, Lacey L. Mendoza and Cameron N. Vazquez. He is also survived by his sisters, Ruth E. Hazelton and Maxine J. Cram and several nieces, nephews and cousins.
He was predeceased by his wife, Barbara; his father and mother; a sister, Marion E. Farr, who died at age 12; and nephew Terry S. Cram.
Online condolences may be shared with his family at www.chandlerfunerals.com.
Raymond R. Farr Jr.
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