Ralph R. Guy, 83, of Centralia passed away Thursday, January 19, 2022, at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Centralia. He was born on October 19, 1938, the son of Ralph E. and Mary Ellen (Martin) Guy in Effingham. On November 22, 1975, he was married to a fellow teacher, Kay Darnell, at the Presbyterian Church by Rev. James Howie, with whom, they still kept in touch.
Along with his wife of 46 years, he is survived by two daughters, Robin Kish (Jason), and Jodie Stephenson; grandchildren, Elizabeth, Lanie, Maya, Jerak, and Jordan; three great-granddaughters; sister, Patricia Godfrey (George) of Athens, Illinois; a brother-in-law, Jack Elam of Edwardsville, Illinois; and a sister-in-law, Ruth Pownall of West Columbia, South Carolina; and from both sides of the family, he appreciated and enjoyed numerous nieces and nephews.
Ralph was a graduate of Mattoon High School and continued his education, earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in art at Eastern Illinois University and did one year of additional graduate work in Bloomington, Illinois. He shared his talent for art by passing along his gift to grateful high school students, as a teacher for 30 years, 25 of those years at Centralia High School. He attended services and bible study at the First Baptist Church regularly but maintained membership at Temple Baptist Church in Centralia, where he was baptized in 1995. Although Ralph would not brag about himself, he was well known for his art, producing award-winning oil paintings for most of his life. He had a solo exhibition of fifteen large oils from May 14 through July 24, 2011, at Mitchell Museum in Mt. Vernon. Publicity at the site of the exhibit stated, in part; “Centralia, Illinois, artist Ralph Guy paints fantastic and whimsical landscapes swirling with stars, the planets, dizzying vortexes, mixed with people and events from everyday life. Guy envisions a world of errant knights scaling impossible mountains, children playing in magical worlds, and all the while he reinvents ancient mythologies along the way. Guy refers to his colorful “mindscapes” as “fantastic realism”. Ralph remained a modest man, never letting his impressive accomplishments go to his head. He painted for the love and beauty of creating. Ralph leaves for all those who knew him the encouragement of looking to make the impossible possible, doing so with tremendous grace while sharing his gentle style.
A celebration of life memorial service will be held Sunday, February 27, 2022, at 8:00 a.m. at First Baptist Church with a breakfast for fellowship to follow. Memorials may be made in Ralph’s honor to the First Baptist Church and will be accepted for the family at the Irvin Macz Funeral Home in Centralia. Online condolences and memories of Ralph may be shared with the family by visiting www.maczfuneralhomes.com and/or on the funeral home’s Facebook page. Irvin Macz Funeral Home in Centralia is privileged to be assisting the family of Ralph Guy with arrangements.
