Raymond Berilla

Raymond G Berilla, 73, passed quietly in Sarasota, FL on Friday, October 21, 2022. He was born to George and Margaret (Kavulich) Berilla on August 30, 1949, in Cleveland, OH, later growing up in Cambridge, OH. His current residence was in North Port, FL where he resided for the last 16 years.

He attended SJV seminary, Steubenville, OH for 6 yrs then became a student at OSU in Columbus, OH earning his bachelor's degree as an English major. He was very attentive to proper usage of grammar, and available to help teach or counsel where needed. As an accomplished writer he was a contributing editor for Worthington News in Ohio and in the North Port, FL community paper. Ray was also successful in getting his first children's book published just last year, The Christmas Cow, insisting all proceeds be directed to his favorite charity, Feed the Children.

Ray loved his classic cars and was proud owner of many throughout his years, including his '55 Chevy, Grand National Pace Car, and a Barracuda. There was never a day without music in his life either, which gave him great joy and helped him to cope with all his difficulties.

After college, Ray enlisted in the US Navy serving a tour of duty in Vietnam aboard USS Joseph Strauss as a Seaman Boatswain. Never afraid to tackle tough issues, he challenged the Blue Water Controversy and valiantly fought against Agent Orange exposure with Ray being a victim himself.

His heart found a way to help his fellow shipmates, even going so far as to obtain Captains Logs to document and fight for more VA benefits. Ray saw a need to create a web site for USS Joseph Strauss to provide communication between shipmates, thus becoming their webmaster for many years.

"Mr. Gadget" expected perfection and was able to fix things in more efficient ways, modifying as needed, just like his dad.  Always intuitive about how things worked, Ray also used his skills in his home business, Video Connections.

Ray was preceded in death by his parents and will be deeply missed by his siblings. Christine Farrell (Don Carroll) of Owasso, OK, Sheryl (Jerry) Petrasko of Dixon, IL, Denise Pape of Owassso, OK, Georgene (Drew) Marko of Pittsburgh, PA, Mark (Wendy) Berilla of Winston-Salem, NC, Matt (Susan) Berilla of Norwich, OH and Margaret (Dolly) Berilla of Sand Springs, OK.

His life of suffering was no match for his inner strength as he never gave up.  His struggles were rewarded with two service dogs. Molson, his service dog, met him when Ray was able to finally walk into heaven. His current loving and loyal buddy, Beau, will sure miss his Papa. Friends, family, nieces, and nephews will dearly miss his sense of humor, and wit but our loss is heaven's gain. Till we meet again, Ray.

Services will be held at Christ Our Light Catholic Church with Military Honors, at 701 Gomber Avenue in Cambridge, OH, November 2, 2022, from 10-12 PM in the Marian Room with Funeral Mass to follow. In lieu of flowers please consider a tax-deductible donation to Ray's favorite charity at feedthechildren.org in his memory.