Raymond John Sartorius died on Easter morning, March 27, 2016 at age 87. Ray was born to Fred Sartorius and Lila (Martin) Sartorius on a farm near Mt Lake on April 16, 1928. He had 3 brothers, Russell, William and Robert and one sister, Margaret. After his father died in 1931, his family moved to Windom where Ray attended public school. He enlisted in the US Navy in 1946 and served 2 years. He was on the crew of the USS Rowan, one of the target ships at Bikini Atoll during atomic bomb testing for Operation Crossroads. In 1948 he joined the Army National Guard. His unit was activated in 1950 during the Korean Conflict. While stationed at Camp Rucker in Alabama, he and his wife, Marjorie (Stansfield) Sartorius, had 2 children – Johanna and Paul. Their third child, Mitchell, was born in 1957 in Windom. Ray's nephew, Topper Burgess, joined the family in the summer of 1967. For one school year, 1967-68, the family hosted an AFS student from Brasil - Thelma de Mesquita Garcia. It has been a lifelong relationship, with visits to and from Brasil. Ray worked for Crane's Furniture on 4th Avenue from 1952-1958. He then took a position with Ralston Purina where he worked until his retirement; the last 20 years as owner of Ray's Feed Service. During retirement years, he worked for the funeral home in Windom, first with Anderson-Schmidt and more recently with LaCanne Family Funeral Services. He was catcher on Windom's fastpitch softball team and bowled on Quevil's team, hitting 299 in 1968 at the Windom Sports Center. He was an avid hunter of pheasants. He trained many hunting dogs and walked many fields. Ray was very proud of his service on the Windom Fire Department and Ambulance Squad for 25 years. He was active in the United Methodist Church and Webelos and was a volunteer driver for several years in the RSVP and Meals on Wheels programs. Ray Sartorius was a good and attentive father, supporting his kids in school, music and sports; and into their adulthood. Precious are the memories of camping trips the family took every summer. He was preceded in death by his wife, Marj, sons, Mitch and Paul, and his brothers and sister. He is survived by daughter, Johanna (Randy) Mills; nephew, Topper (Susan) Burgess; daughter-in-law, Carla Sartorius; grandchildren - Brooks (Carrie) Sartorius; Jenny (Chris) Cunningham; Lindsay (Joseph) Bruette; Alison (Drew) Mills; three great grandchildren, Zachary, Nicholas and Charlotte and many nieces and nephews.