Ray Curtis "Pa Pa" Denham

Ray Curtis “Pa Pa” Denham, 82, of Pampa, went to glory on Good Friday, March 30, 2018, in Pampa.

Services will be 2:00 PM Monday, April 2, 2018, a Carmichael-Whatley Colonial Chapel, with Pastor Mike Borger of Trinity Fellowship, officiating. Burial will follow in Fairview Cemetery under the direction of Carmichael-Whatley Funeral Directors.

Ray was born August 19, 1935 in Wheeler to Dexter and Opal Denham. He was a member of the Boy Scouts when he was a young boy, and later served with the Texas National Guard from 1952-1954. He joined the U. S. Navy in 1955, serving on the USS Lake Champlain CVS-39 until he was honorably discharged in 1958. He served inactive duty from 1960-1962.

Ray moved to Pampa in 1959. He met and married Mary Shaw on June 17, 1960, and they have been married for 57 years.  He worked for Joe Hawkins Appliance Store for 15 years, and Jack McAndrews Superior RV Repair for 22 years. He was a “jack of all trades”. He could do anything he set his mind to. Ray loved camping, motorcycles, 3-wheelers, dune buggies, cb radios, sitting on the patio, and reading western books while dreaming up his next project. He built one of the first homemade trikes in the area.

Survivors include his wife, Mary of the home; two daughters, Darla Starbuck and husband Lonnie, and Donna Whitson and husband David, all of Pampa; a brother, Clifford (Dod) Denham of Ranchita, California; three grandsons, Seth Starbuck, Austin Starbuck and Riley Whitson, all of Pampa; one granddaughter, Alli Whitson of Pampa; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Ray was preceded in death by two children, Tammy Rene Denham and Curtis Ray Denham; a sister, Lillian; his parents, Opal and Dexter Denham; a brother, Charles Vergil (Jim) Denham; and two sisters-in-law, Lillian Denham and Mable Denham.