Raymond Bland

Raymond "Ray" Delno Bland, age 88, passed away peacefully on June 23, 2024. Ray's love and dedication to his family will forever be cherished by his wife of 49 years, Louise Bland; four children, Kathryn Shull, Jim Shull and his wife Christen, Paula Renton and her husband Tim, and Curt Bland; and eight grandchildren, Olivia Moore and her husband Ladan, Zachary Bland, Nathan Bland, Nicholas Bland, Lauren Wolff and her husband Samuel, Austin Shull, Tyler Renton and his wife Imani, and Lucus Renton.

Ray was born in Dayton, Ohio, on September 22, 1935. He served in the Navy, attended the University of Dayton, and received a Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of Albuquerque. In 1960, Ray and his first wife, Eleanor Bland, who preceded him in death, moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, after Ray was recruited by Sandia National Laboratories. Ray worked as a technician in the Materials Research group and was promoted to section and division supervisor. In 1974, Ray married Louise Bland, and the couple continued to live in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and work at Sandia National Laboratories. Ray ended his career at Sandia National Laboratories as a part of the Military Liaison group. After retirement, Ray served as a senior mentor for the Sandia Laboratories Weapons Intern Program and found great pride in training a new generation of laboratory employees. Ray served the United States in the Navy and by dedicating his professional life to safeguarding the country through his work at the Sandia National Laboratories.

Outside of his professional pursuits, Ray was passionate about his many hobbies. He enjoyed mechanical work, especially restoring cars and motorcycles. Throughout the years, he restored many vehicles, including his Ford Model A, Mercury Cougar, Volkswagen Bug, BMW motorcycles, and Moto Guzzi motorcycles. Ray loved riding motorcycles and spent many hours traveling to BMW and Moto Guzzi motorcycle rallies, and was part of the pit crew for a motorcycle that set a speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Ray could often be found working in his shop and shared his passion for lovingly restoring vehicles with his children and grandchildren. Ray loved the outdoors and shared his passions for skiing, hiking, and camping with his family. His grandchildren will always cherish memories of visiting his cabin in Chama, New Mexico, where he taught the grandchildren to ride the ATV and drive his restored 1946 Jeep. In winter, Ray enjoyed pulling the grandchildren in a wooden red sleigh behind the ATV.

Ray will be remembered by his family and through the lifelong love of learning he instilled in them. Ray's favorite poem was "Attitude" by Charles Swindoll, and he taught his family that having a good attitude is part of navigating life. To honor Ray's memory, the "Attitude" poem is shared below with the hope that those reading this will navigate life with a positive and perseverant attitude.

"Attitude"

By Charles Swindoll

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think, say, or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we embrace for that day. We cannot change our past, we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you, we are in charge of our attitudes."

Raymond Bland will be laid to rest in the Santa Fe National Cemetery with his family in attendance.