Paula Joan Ray

In her career and in her home life, Paula dedicated herself to family and to learning, always believing in the potential of people and maintaining a sense of optimism about what life had to offer.

The oldest child of Paul and Rose Baron, she graduated from Wayne Valley High School in Wayne, New Jersey, and was a fencer at Patterson University. She travelled to San Diego for a fencing competition at San Diego State University, and wooed by the sunshine (and Donald Dickerson, her first husband), decided to stay, earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education from San Diego State University.

Paula taught for 25 years in the San Diego School District, including Farb, Keiller and Marston Middle Schools. She loved teaching and was herself a lifelong learner, later becoming certified at The Hudson Institute in Santa Barbara as a personal coach to help people reach their goals and find their purpose.

Paula believed in being her best self and appreciating the joys life has to offer, inspiring everyone around her to do the same. She loved tennis and golf, frequenting Lomas Santa Fe Golf Club and the former Warner Springs. She appreciated art and had an eye for beautiful design, like her home in Stratford Woods.

Above all, Paula believed in family and in showing up for family. She loved and was always there for her grandkids’ events (and there were many!), took to Instagram to “like” their every experience, and relished any opportunity to spend time with her three children and their families, even if it was on the other side of the country. At all of these events, her arrival changed the chemistry of the moment; she brought an instant feeling of love and positivity to a room. You could always hear her saying, “You’re the best!”

Her surviving family misses her very much--her support, optimism, loyalty and strength. She is survived by her son, Donald Dickerson, his wife Rose and children Melissa, Colin and Jason Dickerson of Solana Beach, CA; her daughter, Kathy Pratt and her children Spencer and Allison of Encinitas, CA; and her daughter, Nancy Solomon, her husband Josh and their children Ellie, Max, Joe and Mia of Sudbury, MA; and her sister, Elaine Beringhause of Bluffton, SC.

True to her belief in possibility, Paula was a founding member of ARCS, which advances science and technology in the U.S. by providing financial awards to scholars studying to complete STEM education degrees. Through ARCS, she was committed to supporting the development of American scientists for 30 years. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to ARCS.