A. Raymond Schmalz, 76, of Mill Valley, passed away peacefully on the morning of Monday, June 26, 2023. He was born December 15th, 1946 to the late Arthur and Elsie (Robotham) Schmalz in Hartford, Connecticut. Ray met Mary Louise Munson at Wells College in the fall of 1966 and the two were married June 6th, 1970 in Sea Girt, New Jersey. He was a devoted Mason, active in the Unitarian Universalist Church and enjoyed hiking through Marin County with his much loved dogs.
After attending Hotchkiss in Lakeville, Connecticut, he graduated from Lehigh University with two degrees, a BA in Applied Science in 1969 and a BS in Industrial Engineering a year later. While at Lehigh, he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Society. He began his career at Eastman Kodak as a cost accountant from 1970 to 1972. He then returned to school and, in 1974, earned an MBA in Finance from Stanford Graduate School of Business. After business school, he joined Digital Equipment Corporation where he worked until 1998 eventually becoming Director of Benefits Finance and Investments. At this point, he moved to the Bay Area and became Vice President of Cash, Investments and Risk Management for AAA Northern California, Nevada, and Utah, overseeing the management of its investment portfolio until his retirement.
He was a long time Mason who joined Simon W. Robinson Lodge in Lexington, Massachusetts in 1990 where he also participated in Scottish Rite and Shrine activities. In 1998, he joined the Mill Valley Lodge and served as Master Mason in 2002. He was proud to be a long-serving lodge treasurer and, from 2012 to 2015, Grand Treasurer for the Freemasons of California. He appreciated the fraternity he received from his brothers and took joy in helping new members learn rites and progress through the degrees of freemasonry.
In addition to his dutiful service with the Masons, he was president of the Rotary Club of Lexington from 1997 to 1998. In his younger days, he was an avid golfer who read every Dirk Pitt novel and, in his later years, he traveled the world on hiking trips with his wife and watched little league games, cheering on his grandchildren as they rounded third, headed for home.
He was predeceased by his sister, Carolyn. Ray leaves his wife, Mary Louise, son, Jeff, daughter, Katie Saks, son-in-law, Michael Saks, and two grandsons, Kyle and Jake Saks.
A celebration of life will take place at a later date.
This obituary was taken in part from Legacy Remembers, published July 2, 2023.