Rev. Raymond Otto passed peacefully into the arms of Christ on January 12th, 2024. Ray was born in Detroit, MI on April 14th, 1933 to Claudia and Christian Otto. The oldest of five siblings, Ray often reminisced about childhood adventures with Ruth, Robert, Grace and Eunice, who he loved dearly and remained close with throughout their lives. With limited resources during the Great Depression, Ray’s family enjoyed simple pleasures such as fishing from the family boat on the Detroit River, lining up live Christmas trees in the dining room, enjoying their pet parakeet who flew freely in their home, and star watching from their balcony on balmy nights.

Detroit’s booming auto industry offered fertile ground for Ray’s lifelong love of cars, and he had early aspirations of becoming an automobile designer. With encouragement from his mother however, Ray set his sights on becoming a minister, graduating from Concordia Seminary in 1958. Following initial work as a church pastor, Ray found his true calling in 1965 as a pastoral care director. Ray was a passionate leader of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) programs, which he launched at several hospitals during his career. Ray was active in CPE work at the national level, serving as the Southeast Region Chair for the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education. Ray was a strong believer that CPE programs provided the self-reflection and skill building needed for pastors to provide effective counseling support.

Ray touched the lives of so many with his warm and caring spirit, including treasured friends and family members. His children and grandchildren will be forever thankful for the loving support he wrapped them in. He had a gift of truly understanding people without judgment, and readily offered sage advice or a perfectly apt anecdote to guide his family through the ebbs and flows of life. He served as a model of empathy, love, and insight for all who knew him. He is survived by his loving wife, Judith Bunker Otto, his children Aurora Otto, Jill Otto, and Nathan Bunker-Otto, as well as grand-children Lynn Otto, Jacob Burnett, Jordan Francis, Blake Bryant and Rebecca Francis. 

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