Mary Beth Ray Ridgeland – Mary Beth Ray passed away Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at Merit Health – Madison in Canton, MS surrounded by beloved family. She is survived by her sister, Martha (Steed) Bell (Jim); her son Glenn Ray (Michelle); her son Chuck Ray (Frances); and her daughter Mary Ann Black (John) as well as four grandchildren she adored – Anthony Ray, Amanda (Ray) Callahan (Lucas), Jacob Ray and Ben Ray – along with niece Elisabeth (Bell) Cheponis (Ryan), nephew Jamie Bell, and great nephew and great nieces Jackson, Charlotte and Caroline Cheponis. Born to Guy Martin and Juanita Amanda (Byrd) Steed in Memphis, TN, her family moved to Madison County Mississippi and operated a dairy farm. Mrs. Ray learned to play the piano at an early age and had a beautiful singing voice. As such, she spent a lot of time in her teen years playing piano and singing in church and at various functions around the area. Upon graduation from Madison-Ridgeland High School, she attended Belhaven College majoring in music. In 1960, she met Glenn T. Ray at the First United Methodist Church in Ridgeland where her family attended. They quickly fell in love and were married on October 1, 1961. They made their home in what, at the time, was a more rural area of Ridgeland ultimately establishing a permanent homestead on what the family fondly calls “Steed Hill” – named for the remnants of the family dairy farm. She served as pianist, organist and even choir director at times at Ridgeland First United Methodist for many years and also taught piano lessons in her home to numerous students of all ages through the years. Her talent and love of music greatly influenced her three children with each of them being musical in various ways. Mrs. Ray loved her little slice of heaven on Steed Hill and the beauty all around her there. She spent much of her life planting and tending to all manner of flowers, shrubs and trees around the property as well as maintaining the banks of the creek that runs thru the edge of the property. It was without a doubt her happy place. She loved decorating her home and finding ways to make it more beautiful. She always had appropriate decorations in her home for the various seasons and holidays throughout the year. She and her daughter, Mary Ann, regularly enjoyed shopping together at all their favorite places and had fun finding new things for her home and yard. Mrs. Ray loved her family above all else – especially her grandchildren. She loved to laugh and always strived to be a fun mother and grandmother. She connected with each of her grandchildren in their own special way and loved to bring them joy. The grandchildren always loved to play board games with her because she always let them win. She would say that in her 31 years of being a grandmother, she never won a game of “Sorry”. She and Mr. Ray attended every basketball game, football game, play and musical performance, church event and any other type of activity they participated in. She always made sure they were present in their grandchildren’s lives. She loved birthdays and holidays and always went out of her way to make sure they were special for each member of her family. She will be remembered for things like making gingerbread men at Christmas, making heart shaped sugar cookies for Valentine’s Day, and hiding a gigantic purple foil egg in her yard for Easter. She loved April Fool’s Day and spent many hours concocting elaborate April Fool’s tales to try to trick family and friends. Mrs. Ray taught her whole family how to live, laugh, and love. Without a doubt, her legacy of love will live on for many years to come. The family would like to thank the doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and other staff in the ICU at Merit Health Madison for their loving care during her time there. Visitation will be Monday, April 17, 2023 at Natchez Trace Funeral Home on Hwy 51 in Madison at 10:00 am followed by a funeral service at 11:00 am with burial immediately following at Jessamine Cemetery in Ridgeland. Mrs. Ray adored the Ridgeland Wildflower Field and Art Park on W. Jackson Street so the family is asking that memorial donations be made to Mr. Harry Day c/o Keep Ridgeland Beautiful. Mr. Day is the artist who created all the metal sculptures in the park – and a lifelong friend of the family. Donations will be used to create sculptures for the park in memory of both Mr. and Mrs. Ray. Checks should be made out to Mr. Harry Day with Mary Beth Ray written in the comments field and sent to Keep Ridgeland Beautiful, 304 Highway 51, Ridgeland, MS 39157.