Sunday, June 2, 2019
Ray and I met in 1945 . From the day we met we became life long FRIENDS. Over the years we stayed in touch basically through sports. In 1962 our METS were born. They took the place of our Brooklyn Dodgers. The Dodgers were always number one in our hearts. Ray loved the Duke of Flatbush ( Duke hit many HRs over the right field
wall into Flatbush Avenue thus he became the Duke of Flatbush. My guy was Gil Hodges ( Known as Mighty Mr. Hodges) Gil was a great first baseman and hit many long drives for HRs. He hit 4 HRs in a game on Aug. 31,1950 against the then Boston Braves.
When Gil Hodges became the Manager of the METS in 1967 Ray and I were thrilled and two years later we and our METS became the World Champion New YORK METS. Ray and I have talked on the phone many times during Mets games. Of course we were adding our expert commentary.
Let me get back to knowing a man, a true friend, for 74 years.
In all the years I knew Ray and I knew him well. He had definite ideas about just about everything and expressed
himself quite clearly. No middle ground with Ray. In all the years that we knew each other we never had a disagreement that last more than a few seconds. I know that is difficult to believe , but it is absolutely true.
A better friend I could not have.
He loved his family dearly . Joan was the love of his life and his daughters from the time of their birth until now were his life. He was amazing when it came to attending games in which his daughters participated from high school through college.Ray was the present father ,what a great example for parents today. He became well known for his attendance at games and his loyalty to the teams his daughters played on. Over the past several years Ray has shown great pride in his grandson Jack. There has never been a time in the last few years that Ray doesn't
give me an update on JACK.
YES RAY LOVES HIS FAMILY AND THEY IN TURN LOVE
HIM! Can any man leave a greater legacy?
I will miss my dear friend Ray, but believe in the great future we will meet again and pick up right where we left off. I'm looking froward to meeting you again Dear Friend!
GO METS,
Ray Lalley
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