PALACH, Ray

Kingman Daily Miner, Kingman, AZ Friday, December 03, 2010 Kingman resident Ray Palach passed away Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010. Ray was born in Chicago on Jan. 17, 1922, where he lived until 1960, then moving to the village of Harwood Heights, Ill. A love of sports was instrumental in his involvement with youth. In the village, he coached all forms of baseball - minor, pony and colt leagues, and Connie Mack. He was instrumental in the village hockey program and coached a traveling basketball team. In 1987, he and his late wife Lucille moved to Kingman where she encouraged him to get back into the community. Beginning around 1990, Ray went to work as part-time ranger for the Kingman Parks and Recreation Department. Over the next 20 years, Ray would serve the Kingman community as a city employee and volunteer for Parks and Recreation. Ray's devotion to his newfound community and to the youth of Kingman kept him active and involved as he performed numerous duties from ranger, gym supervisor, adult and youth basketball league coordinator, coach and volunteer. Ray never missed an opportunity to help out kids at such events as Hershey's Track, Mighty Mud Mania, Pitch Hit, and Run Punt Pass and Kick ... also the summer carnivals and Basketball Bonanza. But foremost in his list of volunteer positions, Ray made thousands of North Pole calls to the Kingman youth over the years. In 2004, he received the crowning achievement; he was honored as the grand marshal of the Andy Devine Days Parade and received the Arizona Parks and Recreation Association's Citation of Merit Award for Volunteer of the Year. Ray was a friend to everyone. Raymond loved Kingman. Ray is survived by his three children, Bonnie Desimone, Gregory Palach, James Walsh and their spouses, Richard, Jack and Wendy. He also has two wonderful grandchildren, James Raymond and Caitlin Querio. A memorial will be announced in December. Donations can be made to the Cancer Research Center at KRMC.