Renaldo "Ray" Perez Mercado

On Wednesday, March 31, 2021, Ray Mercado of Elkridge, MD passed away peacefully at Gilchrist Center Howard County. Devoted and loving husband of Brenda (Zautner) Mercado, dedicated father of Rosa (Anthony) Verderosa, Adam (Sonya Evans) Mercado, Alex (Hayley Malkus) Mercado, caring son of Ernesto and Gloria Mercado, steadfast brother of Ita Santiago, Lilly Tressa, Nilsa (Tingo) Diaz, Johnny (Judy) Mercado, and uncle to many nieces and nephews.

Ray was born in Lares, Puerto Rico on October 24, 1952. His parents later moved to Youngstown, Ohio where he lived with his four siblings. Ray began working as a ball chaser at Oakland Field where he made $1.00 a game as a young boy, followed by a variety of jobs within engineering technology. Ray attended Youngstown State University, where he earned his A.A.S. in Civil Engineering and B.S.A.S. in Civil Engineering Technology. He moved to Maryland in May of 1988 and was joined by Brenda, his girlfriend of six years. Ray and Brenda married on December 31, 1988. He began his career as a traffic engineer with Maryland State Highway Administration and spent decades contributing to the improvement of traffic and safety of Maryland roads with Prince George’s and Howard Counties. Later in his seasoned career, Ray would retire and join Wallace Montgomery & Associates as a Senior Traffic Engineer contracted to District 5 of the Anne Arundel State Highway Administration. He enjoyed meeting new people, sharing stories, attending and recording live music performances, playing bass guitar, working on his cars, visiting tiki bars, and spending time with his family and many friends with a cold beer in his hand.

Family and friends are invited to gather at the Gary L. Kaufman Funeral Home at Meadowridge Memorial Park, Inc., 7250 Washington Boulevard, Elkridge, MD 21075 (exit 6 south off Rt. 100) on Saturday, April 24th, 2021 from 10:30AM until the start of the Celebration of Life Memorial Service at 11:30AM. Inurnment will be held at a later date privately. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Ray’s name to Gilchrist Center Howard County.