Ernest Ray Myers

Ernest Ray Myers, formerly of Norwood, Massachusetts passed away in Rockville, MD on May 27, 2021. 

Ernest grew up in Astoria, Queens, New York.  He was the youngest son of Frances and Jerome Myers and the most mischievous.  As an adult, he would often reminisce about his many adventures growing up in the “projects” and about keeping his parents on their toes.  

As a young adult, he moved to Waltham, Massachusetts to attend Brandeis University.   At Brandeis he became especially close to one professor, Dr. Pauli Murray.  A movie about Dr. Murray, and her noteworthy life accomplishments is scheduled for release later this year.  The movie features an in-depth interview with Ernest and his remembrances of her.

Ernest, a 70’s renaissance man, held a variety of occupations including a sole proprietorship in commercial maintenance, a government contractor for youth development, a corporate security professional, and for a short period of time he even worked as a carnival worker.  Like so many of his era, he journeyed west and embraced the California lifestyle where he met and treasured many close friends.

It was in California where his entrepreneurial inklings were spawned and developed when he was called by college friends to assume the directorship of the first, independent state contracting service for delinquent youth in Massachusetts.

In 1981, he met his wife, Helena Liles, in Framingham, Massachusetts.  They relocated to New York, married, and had two children Crystal and Ernest.  In the 1980s they settled down in Forestville, Maryland and in the 1990s they moved to Norwood, Massachusetts and purchased their dream home.  Together they lived contently in Norwood for over twenty years.

Ernest believed in civic responsibility and considered it mandatory to fulfill his obligation to vote. On one occasion, there was an open seat in his local precinct, and he decided to write in his name for the job.  A short time later, he received a telephone call from the town announcing that he WON the Election!  That call was followed by a box of documents arriving at his doorstep that needed processing at the next Town Meeting and his political career was off and running!!   

Ernest was known for his jokes and storytelling talents.  He was gifted in the garden and gifted in the kitchen and he could create culinary masterpieces off the top of his head.  His friends noted that he could feed a multitude, often with a loaf and a fish.  A visit with Ernest always meant delicious food and fascinating conversation as he was an avid observer of people and issues of the day. 

Ernest was a romantic about his birthplace in New York City and imagined that when his time came, he would float away, carried by lighted candles over the stillness of the East River at night against the Manhattan skyline, simply saying farewell.

Ernest leaves behind to cherish his memory his children Crystal Myers and Ernest Robert Myers; his nephew Michael Liles, sister-in-law Bobara Liles and mother-in-law Luseal Liles; his brother Jerome Myers, sister-in-law Maria Myers, and his nieces Tanya Myers and Tammy Myers; his nephews Joseph Myers and Lawrence Myers; his close friend Leroy Ashwood and his many life-long friends.

He was preceded in death by his beloved wife Helena Myers, his parents Frances and Jerome Myers, his brother Reginald Myers, and his sister-in-law Cecelia Myers. 

Brandeis University held a special place in Ernest’s’ heart. He was one of the earliest members of their Myra Kraft Transitional Year Program (MKTYP) classes and the program was life-altering for him.  He was exposed to new academic experiences and introduced to lifelong friends.  His family requests that if you are so moved, please make a donation to the Myra Kraft Transitional Year Program scholarship fund by going to the school’s Diversity Scholarships page or by going to www.giving.brandeis.edu and scrolling down to make a gift to diversity scholarships. .

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