Ray Masayko
The mayor who helmed Carson City into the new millennium passed away in his Carson home Sunday morning at the age of 79, friends confirmed Monday.
Ray Masayko served as mayor of the capital city from 1996 to 2004, having lived in the city with his wife Dianne since 1984.
Ken Haskins, pastor of First Christian Church in Carson City, knew Masayko for decades, including his work with the local Lions Club. He said this year, Masayko received a lifetime achievement award from the club and had been instrumental working with the city’s youth, specifically on the club’s student speaking contest.
Masayko was a great human, “a friend to anyone who needed one,” and a strong man of faith, Haskins said, adding his friend’s death is a loss for the community.
“I just remember Ray as a good citizen, whether public or private. He served this community well whether he was in office or out of office,” he said.
Masayko was born in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1944 and graduated from Mineral County High School in Hawthorne in 1962 before attending WNC and UNR, according to the Appeal’s archives.
“He retired from Sierra Pacific Power Co., in January 1996, ending a 25-year career as a senior customer services manager, prior to his seeking election as mayor,” reads a 2004 article.
Masayko also served on the Nevada Association of Counties, the Carson City Senior Citizens Center Advisory Council, the Chamber of Commerce board and Warren Engine Co. No. 1 volunteer fire department.
Monday, Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong said Masayko was “extraordinarily devoted to Carson.” The sheriff called him a wonderful and giving person.
“Ray stayed engaged after leaving office of mayor,” Furlong said. “He stayed engaged in the community, and he continued to give out of his own to organizations he felt were deserving. He will surely be missed. He was quite a character.”
Robey Willis, former justice of the peace and resident of Empire Ranch Road, was neighbors with Masayko for over 20 years, he told the Appeal. Willis said he, Masayko and friends would go to Slot World for breakfast every Saturday morning, as recently as three weeks ago.
Willis recalled Masayko as a good mayor and “financially sound.” When asked what Masayko’s best quality was, Willis said, “his honesty.”
“He was a very honest man, and he did have a good sense of humor, too,” he said.
Masayko and Dianne had four children between them and numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren, according to family.
Kathy Trujillo, Masayko’s eldest daughter and a Hawthorne resident, said her father was the charter member of the Mineral County Chamber of Commerce and “was so involved in economic development, tourism and recreation.”
“You name it, he just really was a shaker and mover in the town,” she said. “His leadership really shaped the community.”
Her fondest memory was her dad getting Cecil the Sea Serpent, the mascot of Mineral County High School, into the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City. In this way, he was a bridge between the two communities, she said.
“He always loved a good parade,” she added.