Lonnie Ray Downs of Princeton, Texas passed away from COVID Pneumonia on December 19, 2020 at the age of 81. He was born on September 29, 1939 to Alvin B. and Eleanor Carabelle Taylor Downs in West Monroe, Louisiana.
He is survived by his wife, Betty Downs; children, David Downs and wife, Chris, Mike Downs and wife, Patti, and Toni Fawks and husband, Wayne; brothers, Alton Downs, Thomas Downs and Marvin Downs; and numerous other loving family and friends.
Lonnie was preceded in death by his parent and his son, Darren Scott Downs.
"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." – Theodore Roosevelt.
Lonnie was a blessing to those around him and when told of those praying for him, just hours before he passed, his response was to say,”I bless them.”
In lieu of flowers or gifts, family requests donations be made in his name to the Union Gospel Mission at www.ugmdallas.org