Rev. Ray M. Seely
BARBERTON -- Rev. Ray M. Seely, 94, Pastor Emeritus of Columbia United Church of Christ, passed away May 15.
A native of Richland County, Wis., he was born in 1891. He was a graduate of Defiance College, and was an ordained minister for many years. His first pastorate was in St. Johnsville, N.Y., the home of his late wife, Elma. The churches he served in Ohio include Franklin, Campbellstown-Concord, Columbus Grove, Radnor and the Columbia United Church of Christ, of which he was pastor for 19 years. Following his retirement from Columbia United Church of Christ, he was chaplain of Barberton Citizens Hospital for four years. He served in World War I in the medical corps at Camp Sherman, was active in the United Fund and Lions Club, and was past president of the Barberton Ministerial Association.
Rev. Seely is survived by daughters, Mrs. Walter (Margaret) Humphreys of Columbus Grove, Mrs. Don (Pat) Mitchell of Barberton, with whom he made his home; sons, Preston and George Seely, both of Barberton, Robert Seely of Norton; 13 grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; brother, Gilbert Seely of Madison, Wis.; and sisters, Roxana Adams of Lake Delton, Wis., Opal Rockhill of Madison, Wis.
Funeral services Saturday, 10 a.m., at Campfield-Hickman Funeral Home, Rev. Ralph L. Young and grandson, William Humphreys of Minneapolis, Minn. officiating. Burial Greenlawn Cemetery. Visitation TONIGHT, 7 to 9; and Friday, 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. In lieu of other remembrances, donations may be made to the Columbia United Methodist Church Memorial Fund. (Campfield- Hickman, Barberton, 745-3161.)
REV. RAY SEELY, 94, OF BARBERTON
To those who knew him, he loved God and Jesus, was fond of the outdoors and believed in optimism.
The Rev. Ray M. Seely, an ordained minister for 71 years who served as pastor of the Columbia United Church of Christ in Barberton for 19 years, died of heart failure WednesDAY, at age 94.
Born in Bloom City, Wis., the Rev. Seely was one of six children raised in a log house built by his father.
After spending time in the Dakotas in logging camps and working as a ranch hand, he was given a license in 1913 to preach by the conference of his small church. A year later, he was ordained at Mound Park Church in Viola, Wis.
He first came to Ohio to study the ministry at the Christian Bible Institute at Defiance College from 1915 to 1918.
He served in World War I in the Army's Medical Corps in Chillicothe and was discharged as a sergeant in 1919.
He graduated from Defiance College in 1924 and later became pastor of Grace Christian Church in St. Johnsville, N.Y., in 1929.
Before coming to Barberton in 1948, he served at several Ohio churches in Franklin, Campbelltown, Concord and Columbus Grove.
He was pastor of Columbia Congregational Church, beginning in 1948. He retired in 1961 because he wanted to work at a smaller church in Radnor.
He didn't leave for long, however. In an unprecedented move, the church, now Columbia United Church of Christ, voted 101-21 to recall its former pastor.
Local and state Church of Christ officials said it was the first time a pastor returned to the church he had left.
His second retirement came in 1971, when he left the church to become a chaplain at Barberton Citizens Hospital for four years.
A well-respected figure and a popular chaplain in Barberton, the Rev. Seely's motto was: "This is the DAY, the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it." Those who knew him say he lived the motto.
"He was a positive person, he was always looking up," said Pat Mitchell, the Rev. Seely's daughter, with whom he lived the last nine years.
"He said, "This is a good world and good people were in it.' He was never a complainer. He was very optimistic in all of his ventures."
Active in community affairs, the Rev. Seely was a member of the United Fund and the Lions Club. He also was a past president of the Barberton Ministerial Association.
He is survived by daughters
Mrs. Mitchell of Barberton and Margaret Humphreys of Columbus Grove; and sons Preston and George, both of Barberton, and Robert of Norton.
Visiting hours will be from 7 to 9 p.m. tonight and from 2 to 4 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, at the Campfield-Hickman funeral home. The Rev. Ralph Young and the Rev. Seely's grandson, William Humphreys of Minneapolis, will lead the service. Burial will follow at Greenlawn cemetery. Donations may be made to the Columbia United Methodist Church Memorial Fund.
Published in the Akron Beacon Journal (OH) - May 16, 1985
[Grandson of SGS #3916 - Ray Monroe; George Washington; Franklin Edgerly (#3916); Theron Barley (#1768); Thaddeus; John; Ebenezer; Jonas; Obadiah]
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