Ray F. BoedeckerRay F. Boedecker, a longtime Poughkeepsie resident, died on April 16. He was 92.Ray Frederick Boedecker was born on Oct. 20, 1924, in Milwaukee, WI, to Daphne H. Boedecker and Raymond W. Boedecker. His father's job as a chemist in the soap division of Colgate-Palmolive eventually led the family to settle in Short Hills, NJ. In 1942, while a freshman at Penn State University, Ray enlisted in the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers. He served as a combat engineer platoon leader with the 45th (Thunderbird) Infantry Division. His unit, Company B, received the Presidential Unit Citation for its success building footbridges ahead of the advancing army. Ray was awarded the Silver Star for bravery under fire while helping to complete a footbridge over the Blies River on March 15, 1945. The timely completion of that bridge facilitated the 7th Army's push into Germany. The 45th Infantry Division liberated the Dachau Concentration Camp on April 29, 1945. Ray took photos documenting the atrocities they found there and later donated the photos to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.Returning to Penn State after the war, Ray graduated in 1949 with a degree in mechanical engineering. While at Penn State, he was elected to Tau Beta Pi and Pi Tau Sigma engineering honor societies.In January 1948, Ray married Elizabeth Hutchinson in State College, Pa. The couple moved to Poughkeepsie in 1949 where Ray joined the Beacon Research Laboratory of the Texas Oil Company. In 1951, he joined IBM where over a 35-year career he held a number of management and staff positions. By 1970, Ray had advanced to president of IBM's Systems Manufacturing Division, overseeing seven plants with some 20,000 employees throughout the United States. In 1972, he became vice president of the new Systems Products Division. In the 1980s, Ray headed up IBM's manufacturing quality initiative, retiring in 1986 as director of quality programs. In retirement, he headed up TQI Associates, a consulting firm in the field of quality improvement. He also was an examiner for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. In 1988, he authored a book in that field, Eleven Conditions for Excellence. Until recently, the Boedeckers divided their time between homes in Poughkeepsie, Lake Wildwood, CA, and Juno Beach, FL. In retirement, the couple continued to pursue their love of exploring the world together and eventually visited all seven continents. Ray was predeceased by his wife, Elizabeth, in December 2016 and by his twin brother, Robert, in 2015.Survivors include a son, Ray Jr., and his wife, Anne Kelleher, of Shady Side, MD; a daughter, Anne Boedecker, of Concord, NH; grandchildren Nicholas and Nora Boedecker and Wendell Kimper; and nieces and nephews. Memorial contributions in his name to the UNHCR (UN Refugee Agency) or any organization supporting refugees would be greatly appreciated by his family.