CHICOPEE – Raymond Gauthier, 83, of the Fairview section of Chicopee, was Called Safely Home on Tuesday, January 26, 2016. He passed into Eternal Life at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield surrounded by the care and comfort of his loving family. He was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts on May 27, 1932, a beloved son of the late Hermenigilde and Venerande (Martin) Gauthier. He was raised in Lawrence, MA and Dracut, MA and had lived there for many years. He served his country in the United States Air Force during the Korean War and the Vietnam War and retired after 20 years of service with the rank of Master Sergeant. He received numerous medals including the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal and the Vietnam Service Medal. In 1970, he retired from the military and attended the University of Massachusetts where he received a Bachelor’s Degree in 1975. In 1980, Ray and his late wife, Eleanor, moved to Deerfield Beach, Florida where they lived until her passing in 2010. While living in Florida, he was employed as a New Business Manager for Bell South in Florida. He was a member, a Past Grand Knight and a Fourth Degree Knight of the Knights of Columbus and a member of the Elks Lodge, all in Deerfield Beach, Florida. He was a communicant of Saint Anne Church in Chicopee. He was predeceased by his beloved wife and best friend, Eleanor B. (Rimbold) Gauthier who was Called Home on May 29, 2010. They were married on March 5, 1955 at Saint Anne Church in Chicopee and were blessed with over 55 years of happiness together. He leaves his four loving children, Jeffrey R. Gauthier and his wife, Zita, of Chicopee, Leslie K. Ezzo and her husband, Anthony, of Fort Lauderdale, FL, Carole A. Haley and her husband, Matthew, of Delray Beach, FL and Gary A. Lush of DeLeon Springs, FL; his five cherished granddaughters, Nicole, Danielle and Victoria Gauthier, Faith Watson and her husband, Luke, and Erica Graham and her husband, Steve; his three cherished great-grandsons, Kai and Drake Watson and Garrett Graham; his dear brother, Robert Gauthier of Tewksbury, MA; and his many dear nephews, nieces, cousins, friends and extended members of the Gauthier and Rimbold families. Besides his parents and his wife, he was also predeceased by his nine dear siblings. His funeral will be held on Saturday morning, January 30, 2016 beginning at the St. Pierre – Phaneuf Fairview Chapels, (413-533-3307), 506 Britton Street, Chicopee, MA 01020, (funeral home will open at 8:30 a.m.), followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. in Saint Anne Church, 30 College Street, Chicopee, MA 01020. His Burial with United States Air Force Military Honors will be private for his family at a later date at Notre Dame Cemetery, South Hadley. His family will receive friends at the funeral home on Friday, January 29, 2016 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. The parking lot is located in the rear of the funeral home. Memorial donations may be made in his memory to the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke Activity Fund, 110 Cherry Street, Holyoke, MA 01040. For more details, please visit: www.stpierrephaneuf.com