Raymond G. Holzkamp

Ray passed away after a long battle with Alzheimer’s August 27, 2019. A rosary will be held 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 12 and a funeral mass will be at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 13, both at St. Jude Catholic Church, 9405 W Florida Ave, Lakewood, CO 80232 with a reception immediately after at the church.

He is survived by Dorothy, his wife and “love of his life” of almost 60 years; his children Dean, Lauren, Sheri, Gayle, and David; his brother Gary, his grandchildren Connor, Devin, Jillian, Molly, Lucas, Jackie, Ray, Kendra, Danielle, Josh, Kyle, Dane, Hannah, Kaitlyn, Cole, Johnny, Reese and Rielle; and great-granddaughter Marlie (with a great-grandson on the way); his daughters- and sons-in-law Kelly, Brad, Bret, and Mary, along with hundreds of other relatives and friends. He is preceded in death by his son Kurt; his mother, Irene; his father Raymond; and his brothers Don and Bob.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, exactly one week before Black Tuesday ushered in the Great Depression, Ray still managed a happy childhood unaware that poverty was anything to be upset about. He was fortunate to serve his country stationed in Germany during the Korean War and had a successful, 40-year career in the supermarket industry that afforded him the opportunity in 1974 to move his family to Colorado or, as he called it, “God’s Country.”

Ray was completely devoted to his family and spent his life imparting wisdom and showering them with unconditional love. He loved to travel with the “love of his life” Dorothy and enjoyed many trips around the country, to Hawaii and to Europe.

He was a huge sports fan, of both Chicago and Colorado sports teams, who was fortunate enough to witness many Super Bowls, Stanley Cups, NBA Championships and, after 87 long years, a Chicago Cubs World Series championship in 2016! He also made it his mission to spread his love of golf by sharing a round with almost everyone he knew and was fortunate enough along the way to have made a hole-in-one and to have shot a round that matched his age when he was 80-years-old.