Raymond G. Atkinson Sr.

Raymond Garrett Atkinson Sr., age 89, of Brooklyn Park, Maryland, was accepted into the arms of our Lord and Savior on March 6, 2023.  Raymond had an intense will to live and enjoyed the simple things in life and the company of family and friends until the end.   

Raymond was born on January 8, 1934, to Clara and Lloyd Atkinson. As a young boy,  he lived on a farm in Church Hill, Maryland, before moving to Wilmington, Delaware.  In second grade, Raymond moved to Baltimore, where he attended School 203 in Brooklyn.  Raymond graduated from Southern High School in 1952.  On June 21, shortly after graduation, Raymond married his high-school sweetheart, Joan Howard.  Raymond and Joan had three children, Deborah Suzanne, Raymond Garret Jr., and Terri Renee Atkinson.   In 1956,  Raymond and Joan moved to West Arden Road in Brooklyn Park, and then to their forever home on 5th Avenue, where Raymond lived until his passing.

Raymond proudly served his country from 1958 to 1964 in the United States Army.  He had fond memories of his service and often spoke of his time stationed in France from 1958 to 1960. 

Raymond was a jack of all trades who held many jobs throughout his lifetime.  He worked at Bendix, The Baltimore Sun, and Schumacher. In the late 1970s, Raymond and Joan owned a “chuckwagon” and would prepare and sell sandwiches.  In the early to mid-1980s, Raymond worked at Atkinson’s Cards, Gifts, and Gospel, a store in Brooklyn Park that he owned with Joan.  In the 1990s, he was a school bus driver for Hubers Bus Service, where the children knew him as B.B. Wolf.   He retired after having heart bypass surgery. 

Raymond loved spending time with Joan and his family at properties he owned in West Virginia in the early to mid-1980s and in Ocean City, Maryland.  Raymond and Joan were always with their family, whether vacationing, crabbing, going on drives, or celebrating holidays, birthdays, graduations, or frequent visits.  Raymond enjoyed running into his many friends and speaking with them over the years.  In his later years, Raymond could be found walking the aisles of Costco, where he enjoyed the company of his friends who worked there, as well as the samples and keeping a watchful eye on the merchandise.  Raymond was a proud member and supporter of Fellowship Baptist Church, where he had a second baptism in his final months.  He loved the Lord, his church,  and its members.

Raymond is survived by his daughter Deborah Hennessey and her husband Stephen Sr. of Brooklyn Park; son Raymond Atkinson Jr. and his wife Gwen of Severna Park;  grandchildren Amy Hennessey and her husband Matthew Gross of Catonsville, Stephen Hennessey Jr. and his wife Dina of Eldersburg, Terri Hennessey and her fiancé Charles Fretwell of Brooklyn Park, and Grace Atkinson of Severna Park; great-grandchildren Kaia, Dylan, and Mira Gross and Milada and Ruslana Hennessey; sister Audrey Micciche; brother-in law William Howard and his wife Janice; and many nieces, nephews, and friends.  He is preceded in death by his wife Joan Atkinson; daughter Terri Atkinson; parents Clara and Lloyd Atkinson; sisters Jacqueline (Jackie) McDevitt and Della Jean Keefer; mother-in-law Mildred Howard; and sister-in- law Peggy Anthony and her husband Gene.

Raymond will have visiting hours on Wednesday, March 15, 2023, from 3:00 to 5:00 PM and 7:00 to 9:00 PM at Gonce Funeral Service, 4001 Ritchie Highway, Brooklyn, Maryland, 21225. The funeral service will begin at 11:00 AM on Thursday, March 16, 2023 at Fellowship Baptist Church, Glen Burnie, Maryland, 21061 and will be followed by interment at Cedar Hill Cemetery. 

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Mr. Atkinson's Memory to Fellowship Baptist Church Building Fund, 1015 Sundown Road, Glen Burnie, Maryland, 21061.

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