It's with extreme heartache that I am letting you all know that my wonderful Dad, Raymond Lopez, died on Jan 15th at 2:18 am. He died with his family and beloved dog Pablo at his side when he took his last breath. My Dad was diagnosed with Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer on June 9, 2016. While at the doctor's office with his family in towed after receiving the worst possible news, my Dad calmly asked the doctor "How long do I have?" The doctor replied "Ray, no one really knows but more than likely 6 months." My Dad replied " Okay, let's go have lunch, I'm hungry". My Dad courageously fought long and hard for 21 months. My Dad joined the Air Force when he was 17. I'm not really sure how he did that because I thought you had to be 18. He wanted to serve his country, travel the world and get an education. Throughout his 20 years in the service he was stationed in Oklahoma, Maryland, Japan, 2 different bases in California, Philippines, France, Holland, a tour in Vietnam and Okinawa. He made many lifetime friends throughout his travels. Once retired, he worked at Walt's Mobil, went on to have his own business, Ray's Mobil, for 20 years, worked for Wal-Mart, the Lompoc School District and finally at Indyne at VAFB. One of my Dad's job at the age of 14 was at a gas station. He loved cars. Everything about them. Owning, driving, restoring, and working on them. I remember when he was first working for Walt he would come home and tell us he couldn't believe he was getting paid to do what he loved doing. There wasn't anything my Dad couldn't do. He learned how to bartend. My Dad and a good friend, Don Hamilton, rented a bar in Holland. They work in the Air Force during the day and bartend 4 nights a week while running that business. He later bartended at the Officer's club at VAFB and I believe also at the old Royal Coach. He decided he wanted to learn how to fly a plane. And he did! He even flew himself from California to Michigan to attend his nephew's wedding. He could restore cars and bring them back to their glory days such as his 1929 Model A. We were in the Flower Festival Parade many years even earning some trophies. He owned many cars...many! He had a 1960 convertible Mercedes Benz, 1957 Porsche, 1985 944 Porsche, 1963 Corvette just to name a few. Note I may not have the correct years. He could fix anything mechanical and put things together with never once looking at the instructions. He knew construction having learned the trade from his father and his uncle. He completely remodeled our home from putting in arches, lowering ceilings, putting in windows or taking down and putting up new walls. He built outdoor patios and fountains. Whether it be plumbing, electrical, masonry, painting etc. he could do it. What brought him the most joy was interacting with people. He loved giving a helping hand to all those around him. Always wanting to share his knowledge. He loved being the center of attention. He feared nothing. He knew he could always do what he wanted if he put his mind to it. He bought his first computer from Radio Shack. He would buy every book he could find and after working all day, he would stay up until 2 am drinking multiple cups of coffee and smoking his non-filtered Pall Mall Red cigarettes. He wanted to master the computer and he did. My Dad was a gadget man. We would call them "his toys". He would always buy the latest technical gadget the minute they came out. He decided he wanted to learn photography. So, after working all day he attended every class Allan Hancock offered. He went to seminars and joined 2 local photography clubs. He had several of his photos in different businesses in Lompoc. He tried his hand in all styles of photography. He would proudly show off his pictures to everyone. His nickname was "Mr. Paparazzi" as he went around with several cameras hanging from his neck with the long lenses. Besides his love of work, his hobbies and his friends, he loved his family. He was married to my Mom just shy of their 61st wedding anniversary.  There wasn't anything he wouldn't do for his family. I want to thank all of his friends that enriched his life all the way to his last days. He loved you all very much. I want to thank my friends that helped me endure this long heartbreaking journey I was on with my Dad during his brave battle with cancer. Most of all I want to thank my Mom, brothers, son and nephews that also helped me along the way. We will never forget my Dad. We all loved him very much. He was my hero. He is survived by his wife Maria, his 3 children Anita, Frank and Bernard, 4 grandchildren Kyle, Parker, Corben Ray, Sawyer, his sister Marie Lopez, niece Mini, and nephews Raymond and Gregory. We will be having visitation at Starbuck-Lind Mortuary Chapel on Sunday, January 21st, from 6-8 pm with a Rosary at 7 pm. His funeral will be on Monday, January 22nd at 10 am, at La Purisima Catholic Church. He will be given full military honors at the Cemetery . From there we will celebrate his amazing life at the Hilton Garden Inn.