Jack D. Raney (1936-2021)
Jack D. Raney, 84, was unexpectedly called home to his Heavenly Father on Friday, June 11, 2021.
Jack was born in November, 1936, to John and Oma Raney in Southall, Arkansas.
He grew up in Fordyce and Missouri and graduated from Elmo High School in Scott City, Mo. He worked during his early years as a draftsman. He worked with Yale Hoists and then over 35 years as product engineer with Sanyo Corporation in Forrest City. He served with the Arkansas National Guard during the early 1950s.
He met and married his wife, Valerie in 1999. Valerie worked for the Federal Bureau of Prisons and they moved and lived in several locations around the country until her retirement and their eventual move to Idaho.
Jack was involved with the Jaycees in Forrest City and was pleasantly known as Ja Ra the clown during events and parades.
Jack is survived by his wife, Valerie Burks Raney, Ph.D., of Meridian Idaho; his brother, Kenneth of Cape Girardeau, Mo., his father-in-law, Jerry Burks of Meridian, Idaho; a daughter-inlaw, Lisa Raney of Hot Springs; a sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Victoria (Burks) and Richard Alden of Meridian, Idaho; his aunt, Katie Hardman of Fordyce; nieces and nephews in Cape Girardeau, Mo., and many cousins, relatives and friends in Arkansas.
Jack was preceded in death by his parents, John and Oma, and a son, Bret, from a prior marriage.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m., MST, Thursday, June 17, 2021, at Dry Creek Cemetery in Boise, Idaho.
Funeral arrangements are with Alden Waggoner Funeral Home in Boise, Idaho.