Shelter Island Reporter obituary: Raymond O. Evangelista

Raymond O. Evangelista

Ray Evangelista, age 62, loving husband, father and brother, passed away on November 27, 2015 at Stony Brook University Hospital.

Ray and his family resided in Hay Beach.

Ray first came to Shelter Island as a summer resident at the age of 9 years old and then lived here as a permanent resident for more than 20 years. He was born in Queens, New York and attended Brooklyn Polytechnic High School. He earned his bachelor of science in civil engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in 1975. A certified professional engineer for many years, Ray was president of Prude Construction Corporation for several decades, a business that had been in existence for three generations.

He was an avid golfer, basketball and football player during his life. A longtime member of Gardiner’s Bay Country Club, where he began as a junior golfer during the tenure of Bob DeStefano as golf pro, Ray won a championship there as a teenager. He also enjoyed being an active member of the Downtown Athletic Club for several years.

Later in his life, Ray became a self-taught gourmet chef and hundreds of people here on the Island enjoyed his cuisine for many years. At one point, he even held cooking classes for young students at his home. He also loved karaoke and was known to host many karaoke parties, particularly at 9 o’clock on Saturdays.

Ray was known by many for his generosity, positive attitude, big heart and love of the Island. He was always there for his friends and even those he did not know, to offer his help in anyway he could. He is survived by his wife of 19 years, Prima Evangelista; daughters Sarah Evangelista (Washington, D.C.) and Bianca Evangelista (Shelter Island); and son Christopher Evangelista (Delray Beach, Florida); as well as by several siblings. He will be missed by many.

Memorial contributions can be made to two organizations that Ray supported: the Nancy DeStefano Junior Golf Foundation, make checks payable to Gardiner’s Bay Country Club “Nancy Byrne Fund” in the memo line, Gardiner’s Bay Country Club P.O. Box 3014, Shelter Island Heights, NY 11965; and the Shelter Island Educational Foundation, P.O. Box 1950, Shelter Island, NY 11964.