Raymond Watson Jr

Raymond Eugene Watson, Jr., was born February 26,1947 in Bath, Maine. He was welcomed into Heaven by his Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, on Saturday, August 2, 2025, at Chadron Community Hospital in Chadron, Nebraska. Ray was the firstborn child of his parents, Raymond Eugene Watson, Sr. and Doris Elthea (Young) Watson. Born in the hospital where his mother worked as a nurse, he was nicknamed “Bunky” by her fellow nurses, after a comic strip character they said that he favored, and the name stuck.“Bunky” was joined 13 months later by his brother, David Allen, and 13 months after that by his little sister, Beverly Jean (BJ). He was a shy child who enjoyed typical childhood activities, including joining the Boy Scouts of America. One day his father caught him practicing his fire-building skills in his bedroom closet. His family spent many hours camping and enjoying the outdoors. In the summer he also enjoyed attending Camp Fairhaven of Brooks, Maine. It was there, at the age of 15, Ray acknowledged his need of a Saviour and accepted God’s free gift of salvation that is available to everyone who asks. His life was never the same after that. After graduating from Morris High School in Bath, Maine, in 1965, he briefly worked at the Bath Ironworks alongside his father, who eventually retired from there. Ray desperately wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps, who served aboard the USS Texas during World War II, and join the Navy. He worked hard to make that a reality! Little did he know how drastically that decision would change his life. He was eventually stationed in Portsmouth,Virginia. While serving in Virginia he attended Sweethaven Baptist Church, where he met the love of his life, Linda Frances Davis. The pastor of the church encouraged the church families to invite the sailors over for lunch after services. Linda asked her mother if she could invite Ray over for lunch, and the rest is history. They were engaged in October 1968, when Ray said to Linda, “ I don’t suppose you would agree to be my wife”, and she replied, “I suppose I would”. They were united in marriage the following Valentines Day of 1969. They honeymooned in Williamsburg, Virginia, which has continued to be a special place for them to this day. The following March they welcomed their oldest son, Raymond Eugene Watson, III, and sixteen months later a second son, Charles Millard Watson, completed the family. After leaving the Navy, Ray felt the call to full-time Christian ministry and he enrolled in Tennessee Temple Bible School in Chattanooga, TN. He graduated in 1976 and the family moved back to Maine, where in addition to pastoring, he held several different jobs including working at an egg farm, driving school bus and a city trolley, and numerous janitorial jobs. In 2002, Ray and Linda felt the call to Jewish Missions and they joined The International Board of Jewish Missions (IBJM). In 2009, they moved to the Boston, Massachusetts area to fulfill that call. During his time there he conducted several Bible studies in nursing homes, hosted monthly Jewish fellowship meetings at the church, produced short weekly radio programs, that aired on numerous radio stations, and studied Russian as well as ASL. He regularly rode the subway into the city to set up tables of free literature and tracts as well as free Bibles. He reached out in every way possible, to Jewish people and Gentiles alike, with the good news of the Gospel. Ray and Linda moved to Western Nebraska in October of 2023, to be near their sons, grandchildren and great grandchildren, where he continued to share the Good News with those he met. After living independently for a year, in September 2024, they moved in with their oldest son and family, where they currently reside. Ray has struggled with health problems in recent months and he passed away on August 2, after a very brief illness, as his family sang to him about Heaven. He was preceded in death by his parents, Ray and Doris Watson, as well as his paternal grandparents, Millard and Grace (Mank) Watson, and his maternal grandparents, Orman and Mabel (Trask) Young. Ray is survived by his loving wife of 56 years, Linda, and his sons Raymond Eugene (Tonya) Watson, III, and Charles M. Watson, all of Chadron, NE; also his five grandchildren, Steven (Marryn) Watson of Alliance, NE; Nathan (Paige) Watson of Chadron, NE; Kaitlyn (Caleb) Peppel .of Gordon, NE; and Alyssa Watson and Emily Watson both of Chadron, NE; and five great grandsons, Parker and Dawson Watson, Elijah and Malachi Watson, and Matthew Peppel; his brother David ( Karen) Watson and his sister BJ Watson all of Bath, Maine; as well as a special aunt, Lynn Young, of Kittery, Maine; and several nieces and nephews. Funeral services will be held Monday, August 11, 2025 at 10:00 AM at the Chamberlain Chapel in Chadron, Nebraska, with Pastor Dennis Gruber and Pastor Danny Chamberland officiating. Internment will take place at the Black Hills National Cemetery in Sturgis, South Dakota, at 2:30 PM. A memorial has been established for IBJM. Donations can be mailed to Chamberlain Chapel, PO Box 970, Chadron, NE 69337