Ray Darling passed away on May 9, 2019.
Ray Darling was born in Maine and lived in the state for 16 years. After a move to New York City,
he was drafted in to the Army in 1942. Ray retired and left the army in 1970. He was in the Corps
of Engineers, serving in World War ll, The Korean War and Vietnam. From 1970 to 1986 he was
involved volunteering with handicapped children mainly in Connecticut. He moved to Citrus County
in 1986. In 1990, Ray Darling, then 70 years old, had attended a Junior Achievement awards event
at Lecanto High School. Afterwards, he told his wife, Jane, that it troubled him only the “super achievers”
got any kind of recognition, and it was the kids who were struggling, yet showing effort and
improvement, who also needed recognition, maybe even more so than the ones at the head of their class.
Thanks to Ray Darling, Upward Bound, a program of the Rotary clubs in Citrus County, sees upwards
of 800 Citrus County students a year get the encouragement they need to succeed in their education
and, as a result, their adult life.