Raymond Luken Jr.

Raymond Charles Luken Jr. received his wings on August 24, 2023. Known to all who love him as Buddy, he has left our hearts in pieces.
Buddy was born January 5, 1959 in Lynchburg, VA to Raymond and Virginia Luken. He graduated from EC Glass High School where he was a member of the marching band and frequent trumpet soloist. Buddy then went on to Virginia Tech and earned his Masters Degree in Materials Engineering. During his career he worked with companies including General Dynamics, Babcock and Wilcox and ultimately finalized his career after years of working at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, NC where he served as a technical expert in failure analysis.

Buddy was a meticulous craftsman and enjoyed building and renovating houses. He enjoyed spending time outdoors playing volleyball, participating in competitive sailing, biking on rail trails with his brother Steve and hiking on the Appalachian Trail. He shared his love of the trail with siblings, Vickie, Mike and Kim and they hope to continue his journey to Katahdin.

Buddy is preceded in death by his Father, Raymond Luken. He is survived by his mother, Virginia Luken; siblings Vickie (Bennie) Boyles, Michael (Ellen) Luken, Steven (Becky) Luken and Kimberly (Brian) Moore, nieces Jackie (Kevin) Labor, Kathryn (Ryan) Hedrick, Maeve Luken and Ashlyn Moore; nephew Jared (Taylor) Luken and great nieces Zoie and Ava Labor, many cousins, friends, colleagues and neighbors.

A celebration of life will be held in New Bern, NC September 23, 2023. Details will be shared at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Buddy’s name to The Appalachian Trail Conservancy https://appalachiantrail.org/ or The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, either directly or through the 2024 PurpleStride Team “Buddy’s Trail Blazers” http://support.pancan.org/goto/Buddys_trail_blazers.