The daughter of a man who died in a Mesa plane crash reflects on her father's life

MESA, AZ – A Mesa family is heartbroken after losing a man who was a father, husband and brother in a fatal plane crash.

Ray Longhi was driving near Falcon Field on Tuesday. He was in one of the vehicles that was hit by a small Honda jet as it sped off the runway into traffic. Longhi was killed along with four of the five people who were on the plane.

Longhi's daughter opens up and says she wants people to remember her father the way he lived, not the tragic way he died.

Because her mother works for an airline, planes and traveling around the globe have always been central to Longhi's family life. So when Ray Longhi took a job at Boeing years ago, it was natural that they would move into her family home next to Falcon Field.

“I drove down the road hundreds of times, and many of them were with my father,” said Lorraine Longhi, Ray’s daughter. “As we drove down the road, the planes or helicopters would fly over us, and my dad just knew everything about what model of plane it was.”

That's why Lorraine was so stunned when she found out that a plane had claimed her father's life.

“I just couldn’t imagine that my father could be involved in a plane accident near the same airport where he had lived for decades,” Longhi said. “I couldn’t imagine something like this could happen a mile from home.”

Ray was picking up his wife from work on Tuesday when, according to investigators, a small plane left the runway and crashed into his car. His daughter rushed to the scene.

“I just wanted to be with him and be close to him because I loved him so much and I know he loved me so much,” she said.

Her father was 67 years old. Longhi called it “larger than life.”

“Even though he was such a big guy, he was so goofy and good-natured and always tried to make people laugh,” Longhi said.

She says he had plans, such as spending time with his one-year-old grandson, his wife and his two children.

“My father had more life to live. He had things he still wanted to do, we still wanted to do with him,” Longhi said. “It's so unfair and so pointless, but at the same time I know my dad doesn't want us to think about it and just sit there in despair.”

According to Longhi, Ray was a family man from the start.

“My father and all his siblings were adopted,” she said. He leaves behind his two siblings and his mother.

Longhi said because her father was adopted into a loving family in New York, the Sunshine Acres Children's Home in Mesa has a special place in her heart.

“I think the mission really touched a nerve,” Longhi said.

For children separated from their families, Sunshine Acres provides a safe place and caring guardians. Ray donated frequently. The family is now asking for donations in his name.

“It would just mean everything to him, you know, I think he just cared about so many people,” Longhi said.

As a family grieves in silence, they also wrestle with so many questions.

“We are devastated, we are confused,” Longhi said. “We want to know what happened.”

Ray's daughter now has a new perspective on the loss.

“My father was simply more than the way he died. The way he lived was just the most special thing I’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing,” she said. “I just want people to take a minute to hug their dad or their kids.”

Hold on to small moments in a sea of ​​memories.

Anyone who would like to make a donation to Sunshine Acres in Ray Longhi's name can do so on their website. Clothing and other items can also be dropped off at the children's home in Mesa.