Ray  Speith

	Ray Speith, 96, of Ava, passed away at 2 p.m. Wednesday, September 18, 2002 at the Rehab and Care Center of Jackson County in Murphysboro.
	Mr. Speith was a retired Gasoline Station Operator and Bus Driver.  He was a member of First Baptist Church of Ava.
	Mr. Speith  was born Tuesday, May 22, 1906 in Ava, the son of Abe and Bertha Ellen Cottom Speith.  He married Mary Alice Nisbet on June 24, 1928 in Mulkeytown.
	Surviving are his wife, Mary Alice Speith of Ava; one son, Gerald Ray (Retta) Speith of Ava; one daughter, Mary Ellen Trail of Pinckneyville; seven grandchildren, Edward Ray Trail of Pinckneyville, Larry Wayne Trail of Pinckneyville, Claude Dean Trail of Pinckneyville, Mark Eugene Trail of Pinckneyville, Mary Elizabeth Priebe of Percy, Zachary Allen Speith of Ava and Leah Kathryn Speith of Ava; eight great-grandchildren and one brother, George Speith of Ava.
	He was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers, four sisters, one son-in-law and one grandson.
	Funeral services were Saturday, September 21 at 11 a.m. at Wilson's Funeral Home in Ava with Rev. Jeff Wiggs officiating.  Interment was in Ava Evergreen Cemetery.
	Friends called at Wilson's Funeral Home in Ava after 4 p.m. on Friday and on Saturday from 7:30 a.m. until the hour of service.
	Memorials may be made to the First Baptist Church Scholarship Fund or the Therapy Department at Rehab & Care Center in Murphysboro.
	
