Rae Jean Hay's Obituary
Rae Jean Hay passed away on January 20, 2018, at the age of 80 after three weeks in Baptist Hospital ICU fighting lung disease. She was born in Baltimore MD but moved with her family to Memphis, then Nashville, then back to Memphis where she graduated from East High School in 1955.She graduated from Memphis State University in 1960 where she was in Phi Mu Sorority and received a special award after serving as Membership Chairman. Among her friends she was known as “Sugar Rae” because of her effervescence and love of all people. Her fondest college memories were going with friends to hear great blues on Beale Street and in West Memphis. After graduating with a degree in Sociology, she became a government social worker in Memphis interacting directly in the field with her clients.In 1963 Rae moved to Davenport Iowa where she again was a social worker. In 1965 she decided to move to San Francisco and accepted a job as a social worker in adoptions. While there, she married and in 1970 moved to Santa Barbara, CA where she was a Level III social worker due to her experience. As her husband’s medical practice grew, she gave up social work to become his office manager.That change allowed her time to be more involved in community service, so when she was asked by a judge in 1978 to serve on the Santa Barbara County Grand Jury for a year, she accepted. After having been involved for many years in the Goleta Valley Branch of AAUW (American Association of University Women), she was elected President and served two terms during which time the chapter grew to over 450 women. Her unfulfilled passion was to illustrate children’s books after having done one in college.Rae moved back to Memphis in 1995 after her divorce and lived in Collierville before recently moving to Town Village Audubon Park.She was a serious genealogist of her family history and lineage and was known for her demand for documentation. Rae is survived by her sister Janet Hay Lyons and brother-in-law Al Lyons of Memphis TN and Pass-A-Grille FL, nephew Alpha Lyons (Vesna Milojevic) of New Orleans LA, niece Christine Lyons of Leadville CO and several cousins in North Carolina.Private memorial services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Carpenter Art Garden at www.carpenterartgarden.com or PO Box 11529, Memphis TN 38112 or to a charity of your choice.
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