Raymond E. Cox, 69, of Hershey, passed away August 17, 2015 at Bryan LGH in Lincoln. He was born November 29, 1945 to Ed and Amy (Thomas) Cox at Falls City, Nebraska. His family moved to Washington when he was a young boy. He graduated from Orting High School in 1964 and attended Centralia College on a basketball scholarship before returning to Nebraska to live with his sister, Barb. He was drafted into the Army, but before he left North Platte, he was united in marriage to Beverly Brown on January 9, 1966. Ray was stationed at Fort Riley, KS until 1968. He returned to North Platte and worked with family in the drywall business, then starting his own, Ray’s Drywall in 1970. He enjoyed antagonizing Beverly for nearly 50 years. He was Clancy’s best friend, Casey’s protector, and was a devoted “Pop Pop”. Ray was a sustaining member of the NRA, a past member of the American Legion and various area golf courses. He was also the Chairman of the Hershey Village Board for 2 terms. Ray had a huge personality but an even bigger heart. All who came into contact with him recognized this right away. He loved phone calls to family and would often keep relatives on the line for hours. He did everything big and that’s the way he loved his family. He is survived by his wife, Bev; a son, Casey both of Hershey; a daughter, Clancy (Tyson) Hammond of North Platte; two grandchildren, Landry and Dylanie; a brother, Clarence (Deanna) Cox of Washington; two sisters, Debbie Forbes of North Platte and Sandra Davidson of Washington; a brother-in-law, Roger Holsten of North Platte; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; a brother, Charles; sisters, Gladys Schoenbachler, Reba Sigafoos, Marie Casten and Barbara Holsten. Online condolences may be shared at www.carpentermemorial.com. A celebration of his life will be Saturday, August 22, at Butch’s Steakhouse in Hershey from 5-7P.M. Private family services will be held at Fort McPherson at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the North Platte Community College Boost-Her Club or a charity of your choice. Carpenter Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.