Oray Austin, 105 years old, of Hettinger, ND passed away peacefully at the Western Horizon's Care Center in Hettinger, ND on June 1, 2013.

Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, June 5, 2013 at 10:30 a.m. at the Hettinger Lutheran Church. Rev. Kathleen Dettmann will officiate and burial will follow at the Hettinger Cemetery. Visitations will be from 1:00 to 8:00 p.m. Tuesday, June 4, at the Centennial Chapel of Evanson Jensen Funeral Homes and one hour prior to the service at the church on Wednesday morning.

Oray Thomas Austin was born January 12, 1908 in Strasburg, North Dakota. The family moved several times and eventually bought a farm outside of Mott, ND. He met and married Eileen Duncanson there in 1930 and moved to the ranch owned by his father-in-law, L.V. Duncanson, Northeast of Hettinger.

The family moved to Burbank, California in 1934 because of the drought. Oray worked for several different companies there including Lockheed Aircraft where he was the checkout electrician for the B-17 bomber. In 1944 his father-in-law asked him to come back to help with the ranch as well as several grain elevators including Mott Mill and Grain and the L.V. Duncanson elevator in Hettinger. The family moved to Hettinger and he has remained there ever since. In 1950, Oray and Eileen along with Al and Rita Cors purchased Pepsi-Cola Bottling from Florence Howell and Tony Fuglesten. They had a long running friendship and partnership and sold the company in 1974.

Oray still had a lot of energy in his 70's, 80's, and 90's and enjoyed working at the family ranch as well as three years at the Sailer ranch.

Oray loved to fish for walleye and spent a significant amount of time in his boat at Shadehill Resorvoir, Lake Sakakawea, and Lake Oahe as well as Canada and Alaska. In the fall he could be found looking for pheasants. He also loved to dance and was a faithful follower of The Pearly Shells traveling to wherever they were playing and has been a regular at the Pastime Steakhouse since 1944. He is a 50 plus year member of the Shriner's and Masons and a pilot since 1950.

He will be missed by his family and friends and we all hope the fishing is good and the band knows how to play Cab Driver.

Oray is survived by his son, Bill (Sherie) Austin, Hettinger, ND; his sister, Margaret Gibson, Glendive, MT; one grandson, Jerry (Jill) Rosenow, Hettinger and four great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife and six siblings and one daughter.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Senior Meals Program with the Hettinger Senior Citizens Center.