On February 27, 2020, Liane Deere Ray ended her valiant struggle with frontotemporal dementia. She was born on February 7, 1962 to Myrna and Pete Deere in Nashville, Tennessee. She attended high school at St. Cecilia Academy in Nashville where she was a cheerleader. She continued her education at The University of Tennessee in Knoxville, where she swam for the school team, the Lady Volunteers. She finished her bachelor’s degree in government and politics at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, and acquired a master’s degree in divinity from Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington D.C. After completing her master’s degree, she served as an associate pastor at Cameron United Methodist Church in Alexandria, Virginia. She then served as the pastor at Midland United Methodist Church in Midland, Virginia.
Liane was married to her husband, Rodney Ray, for 35 years. Together, they moved from Knoxville, Tennessee to Clearwater, Florida and then to Lorton, Virginia, and settled in Woodbridge, Virginia, where they raised their son and their daughter, Christopher and Alicia Ray.
She loved being a pastor, and frequently visited people in the hospital and people in prisons. After serving as the pastor at Midland United Methodist Church, she became a member of St. Paul United Methodist Church in Woodbridge, Virginia. She loved her church, and she sang in the church’s choir and performed in their hand bell choir. For many years, Liane also volunteered at a food pantry that was run by the church when she was able.
Liane enjoyed cross stitching, cooking, traveling, running, and spending time with her family. She loved animals, and spoke frequently about the pets that she had growing up, such as Snowball and Jack the cats and Patrick the Irish setter. She loved going to Sanibel Island, Florida, and collecting shells that had washed up on the beaches there. Her favorite desserts were lemon flavored. She was a lover of lilies, and her favorite color was red.
Liane is predeceased by her grandparents, Hughland and Omeria Deere, and Walter K. and Ruth Hatfield as well as her father, Pete Deere.
She will be lovingly remembered by her mother, Myrna Deere, brother, David(Kim) Deere, husband, Rodney Ray, their two children, Christopher and Alicia Ray, and her niece and nephew, Taylor and Victor Deere.
There will be a memorial service held for Liane on Wednesday, March 4 at 2:30 PM at St. Paul United Methodist Church in Woodbridge, Virginia. In lieu of flowers, her family encourages making a donation to the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration at theaftd.org.
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