Raymond D. Marchakitus

Raymond D. Marchakitus, father of two and grandfather of four, died on January 15, 2012 of a heart attack after a short battle with cancer. He was 71.

Mr. Marchakitus was born in Wilkes-Barre on the 4th of July, 1940, to Anthony, a coal miner, and Frances, a homemaker, and was raised in Plymouth. 

He was a star athlete at Plymouth High School (Class of 1958) and earned a football scholarship to Wilkes College, where he graduated with a BS in 1962. Later that year, he married his high school sweetheart, Lorraine A. Wampole, and the two of them relocated to the Washington, DC metro area.

From 1962 to 1967, he worked as a housing analyst for the Federal Housing Administration in Washington, DC. For the next thirty years he worked as an economist for the Small Business Administration. From 1981 to 1983, he worked on President Reagan’s Task Force on Regulatory Relief chaired by Vice President George H. W. Bush.

Ray retired in 1997 and has enjoyed golfing and visiting with his grandchildren.

He leaves behind a daughter, Michele Vichich of Maryland and son, Scott Marchakitus of New Jersey; four grandchildren, Ashley (23), Nicholas (8), Alexis (6) and Blake (4); and a sister, Jean Casey of Plymouth.

Celebration of Ray’s Life will be held Friday, January 20 at 7 PM at McLaughlin’s, 142 South Washington Street in Wilkes-Barre. Friends are welcome from 5 to 7:30 PM.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to UMMS Foundation, 110 South Paca Street, Baltimore, MD 21201: www.ummsfoundation.org

Permanent messages and memories may be shared with Ray’s family at www.celebratehislife.com