Ruby Rainey

Ruby Carrie Ashley Rainey, 81, of Williamsburg, Virginia, passed away after a long illness. She was born on February 9, 1924 in Ashe County, North Carolina and grew up in nearby Boone. Ruby earned a degree in mathematics from Appalachian State University. She enjoyed a distinguished career at the NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, where her research was published and remains available for contemporary use. She built a home in Williamsburg, Virginia where she raised three children and cared for her mother. She is lovingly remembered for her devotion to family. Ruby was preceded in death by her parents, G. E. Ashley and Minnie Carrie Jones Ashley; Brothers Howard Ashley, Dr. Jones Ashley, William Herman Ashley, Dr. Grant Dale Ashley and two unnamed infant twins. She is survived by three children: daughters Joan Rainey of Palmyra, Virginia, Nan Rainey of Savannah, Georgia, son Don Ashley Rainey and his wife Carol Rainey of Radford, Virginia and granddaughters Erin Marie Ratliff and Ann Elizabeth Rainey. Ruby will be buried in the Ashley Family Cemetery in Ashe County, North Carolina. Funeral services will be at the graveside at 2 PM Sunday, January 15, with Rev. Rodney Frye officiating. The family suggests in lieu of flowers a donation be made to Hospice of the Piedmont, 2200 Old Ivy Road, Suite 2, Charlottesville, VA 22903 or your local Alzheimer Association. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Badger Funeral Home, West Jefferson, North Carolina.