Kenneth Ray Graves "Ridgerunner" was born April 23rd, 1933, in Louisville, TN, the fourth of eight children born to Maynard C. and Thurie Annis (Carver) Graves.

Starting at the young age of 14, Ray would make the trip by train to Kansas to help his Uncle Ben with harvest for the summer and to hunt.

In Kansas, Ray met Wanda Darlene Milner of Bluff City.  They were married in 1952, to this union two children were born, Larry Ray in 1953, and Dianna Lynn in 1956.  They made their home in Anthony and Ray worked at Boeing.  They moved to Tennessee where Dianna was born and he began his trucking career.  They later returned to Anthony in 1962 and he began hauling produce out of Florida as Ray Graves Trucking.  He started Farmers Oil Company Inc. in 1976, by buying the Amoco dealership from Maynard Grubb, and started delivering bulk fuel to farmers in the area.  He eventually expanded Farmers Oil to include delivery of propane, butane, casing head, and anhydrous ammonia in the Midwest. Ray liked to "load'em like box cars, and run'em like race cars" and had an uncanny ability to get drivers to take "just one more load."  Ray was a shrewd businessman and was well known throughout the trucking industry.

Ray was severely injured in an explosion that rocked Anthony in September 1984. The explosion destroyed the Farmers Oil building, burning Ray over 95% of his body. The building was rebuilt in its current location with the help of Larry.  He sold the business in 2000 to Larry and Donna and started farming full-time with grandson Jeremey and cousin Ellis Graves. In 2006 he married Patsy Hall in Las Vegas. He retired from farming in 2018 but still made sure to keep up with everything going on with the farm and delivering cold pop and candy bars to the field during harvest.

Ray worked hard and played hard.  He and Darlene owned a cabin on Grand Lake and many weekends in the summer he would entertain family and friends. Ray enjoyed watching his grandkids and great grandkids enjoy his love of the water.  He bought a motorcoach that he would take to NASCAR races, Dallas Cowboy football games, trips to Kentucky to see family, and travel across the country.  Ray loved company and being surrounded by others, he was quite the social butterfly.  He loved watching all kinds of sports, especially OU football and softball, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Super Bowl.

For many years wherever Ray was, he had his small Pomeranian dog, named Tuffy.

Ray liked to fish, hunt, farm, play cards, tell stories and reminiscence with old friends.  He stayed sharp until the end and could give directions to and from almost anywhere in the country without looking at a map.  He had a long list of daily phone calls with friends and family, and many truck drivers, past and present.  Ray always spoke his mind and you never had to wonder where you stood with him.  He wanted to make sure everyone knew that a Peterbilt was better than a Kenworth, and Ford was better than Chevy.  Even on his last ambulance ride home he wanted reassurance that he was not in a Chevy.  His granddaughter Stacie said that he was a "Limited Edition."

On February 19th, 2026 Ray passed away at the age of 92 at Patterson Health Center following a brief battle with a rare bone cancer.  He is preceded in death by his parents; siblings: Maynard, Cara Betty, Anna Fay, Reba, Mary Nell, Robert, and Jane, and wife Patsy Graves.

Ray is survived by son Larry and wife Donna Graves, Grove, OK; and daughter Dianna Martin, Neosho, MO. Grandchildren Jeremey Graves and wife Jessica, Anthony, KS; Stacie Martin, Neosho, MO; Julie Martin and husband Aaron, Marco Island, FL; and Heath Martin, Neosho, MO.  Great grandchildren: Abbey (Daniel), Natalie, Zachery, and Emalie Graves; Riley and Cade Martin; Phoenix Martin. Special nephews Randy Stroup, Robert Holt, Tim Thacker, and JD McDaniel. Along with many nieces, nephews, great nieces, and great nephews, other relatives, neighbors, and a host of friends.  He is also survived by stepdaughters Linda Zimmerman, Terry Marr, and Cyndi Ireland.

Visitation with the family will be Sunday, February 22nd, 2026, 4-6 pm at Prairie Rose Funeral Home in Anthony, KS.

A celebration of life will be held Monday, February 23rd, 2026 at 10:30 am at the Anthony Methodist Church in Anthony, KS, burial to follow at Forest Park Cemetery in Anthony.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made payable to the Anthony Firefighters Association, and sent in care of Prairie Rose Funeral Home, 602 E. Main St, Anthony, KS 67003. The family is forever grateful for the response of the Anthony Volunteer Fire Department in 1984 and for the times they have put fires out on the farm, Ray loved to start so called "controlled burns."

The family wishes to thank the amazing staff at Patterson Health Center and Hospice for the excellent care he received at the end of his life.  He was ready to come back to Patterson for his personalized care after his stay in Wichita.  The family would also like to express their gratitude for all those called and who came to visit Ray during his hospital stays in Patterson and Via Christi, to sit with us, to comfort us, and to share with us stories of Ray during this time.