WILMINGTON — Raymond Edward Creech Jr., 77, passed away Monday, April 13, 2020.
He was born June 27, 1942, in Kinston to the late Raymond Edward Creech Sr. and Helen Pate Creech.
Raymond spent his life in Wilmington and had a love for cars and racing at a very early age. As a teenager, he began tinkering with cars and had a natural talent for restoring them. His work with cars was all self-taught. Over time, Raymond’s skills grew to competing at the professional level. Soon, he realized his dream in the 1970s, when he joined a local Wilmington NASCAR racing team. The team included local friend and driver, Jackie Rogers, and was sponsored by “Red Dogs” of Wrightsville Beach.
Raymond later joined a NASCAR team owned by “Hoss” Ellington. The major sponsor was Hawaiian Tropic and the team had several drivers, including Donnie Allison. As a member of the team, Raymond painted and fixed the race cars during the week, and was the “gas man” in the pit stops on race day.
After being on the race team for seven years, Raymond then opened up his own paint and body shop in the 1990s. Later, he joined Corning and worked in the maintenance department for their machinery until he retired in 2004. Throughout this time and in his retirement years, Raymond worked on his lifelong passion of owning and restoring classic cars. He brought his cars to a variety of shows and won many trophies and plaques along the way. Raymond was especially proud of his Indian turquoise 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air, which won several awards and was driven by him in local parades and car shows.
Raymond loved the coast and being on the ocean. His favorite activities were saltwater fishing, deer and duck hunting and camping with friends in the Outer Banks. Raymond enjoyed spending time with his family and was always a nostalgic person who liked to look back at the simpler, classic ways of years gone by. Raymond once said, “Let the record show, I took the blows and did it my way.”
Left to remember him are his son, Alan Creech; brothers, Tony Creech and Joey Creech; sister, Carolyn Creech; nieces, Ashley, Maria and Laura Creech; and many lifelong friends. In addition to his parents, Raymond was preceded in death by his brother, George Creech.
A memorial service will be held at a later date.
Additional pictures of Raymond during the NASCAR racing years and his classic cars may be viewed at Quinn-McGowen Funeral Home.
