Ann Kendall Ray

October 13, 1942 - March 3, 2020

Ann Kendall Ray died peacefully in her home on Tuesday, March 3, 2020. The daughter of Curtis Kendall and Marion Douglas, Ann was born in Mobile, Alabama on October 13, 1942. Ann lived out her passion for music as an accomplished cellist and musicologist. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Florida State University and Master's Degree from Indiana University. She was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Pi Kappa Lambda. She came to Memphis in 1966 to teach at Southwestern (Rhodes College) and to play in the Memphis Symphony. She was also a member of the Jackson (TN) symphony and served as principal cellist of the Germantown Symphony for over 20 years. An active member of the Viola da Gamba Society, participant in early music workshops, and chamber music lover, she lived out her passion and God given talent for music to all she came to know. Ann was also an active member in the Memphis community serving as president of the East Parkway Neighborhood Association as well as member of the local Mensa chapter. She always looked for ways to serve local leaders, care for animals, and contribute to organizations with needs. A long-time communicant of St. Mary's Episcopal Cathedral, Ann was in recent years a member of Grace-St. Luke's in Memphis where she sang in the choir, served in various roles, and enjoyed the community. Ann was an avid genealogy researcher. For several years, she served as editor of Ansearchin' News for the Tennessee Geneological Society while researching her father's family. Reconnections and history were very important to her. A proud mother and grandmother, her survivors include her children Douglas Beatty Ray (Alice), Bradley Elizabeth Crawford (Rich), and Laura Marion Logue (Tom) as well as her six loved grandchildren. There will be a Memorial Service at Grace-St. Luke's at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 26th, 2022 Music gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything. -Ludwig Van Beethoven