Raymond Charles Gillis

Raymond Charles Gillis passed away on June13, 2026, at the age of 79. Born on July 11, 1946 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to parents Raymond A. and Helene Gillis. He graduated from Judge Memorial Catholic High School and attended the University of Utah.

Ray, or Charley as he was known, was a veteran that served in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. After being recruited by the CIA, he was captured and held as a POW. He escaped from his captors and survived 2 months in the jungle before finding his way back to safety.

After he came home, he bought rights to raft the Colorado River, and named his company Navaho Tours. He operated this business from 1972-1980, when he sold those rights to the Sierra Club. He also was a trapper and a big game hunting guide under the name Porcupine Outfitters.

In 1991, while looking for a log splitter in the Mother Earth News, he found Sue Clark in a personals ad, and moved to Minnesota and married Sue. They bought a hobby farm in Rush River in 1992.

Charley is survived by Sue, and cousins Kathe Hare. Mary Harmston and Brian Harmston. He is preceded in death by his parents, Raymond A and Helene Gillis, and by a half-brother, Rex Big Man.

A memorial service will be held for Charley on July 17, 2026 at Peace Lutheran Church in Baldwin, WI. Visitation will start at 10:00 with a service at 11:00.

Cremation services are entrusted to O’Connell Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Baldwin, WI. For more information or to share a memory, please visit www.oconnellfuneralhomes.com, or call 715-684-3434.

Memorials to Peace Lutheran, or World Central Kitchen, or Habitat for Humanity, or Doctors Without Borders.

When God made Charley, he broke the mold.