MESA, AZ — A family in Mesa is heartbroken after losing a man who was a father, husband, and brother in a deadly plane crash.
Ray Longhi was driving near Falcon Field Tuesday. He was in one of the vehicles that was hit by a small Honda jet as it sped off the runway and into traffic. Longhi was killed, along with four of the five people that were in the plane.
Longhi’s daughter is opening up, saying she wants people to remember her dad the way he lived, not the tragic way he died.
With a mother who works for an airline, airplanes and travel across the globe have always been central aspects of Longhi family life. So, years ago, it was natural when Ray Longhi took a job at Boeing, and they moved into their family home adjacent to Falcon Field.
“I've driven up the street hundreds of times, and so many of those times were with my dad,” Lorraine Longhi, Ray's daughter, said. “The airplanes or helicopters would be flying over as we were driving down the road, and my dad would just know everything about what model of airplane it was.”
That is why Lorraine was so stunned to find out an airplane was what took her dad’s life.
“I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that my dad could get into a plane accident next to the same airport he'd been living next to for decades,” Longhi said. “It was impossible for me to imagine that something like this could happen a mile away from home.”
Ray was going to pick up his wife from work Tuesday when investigators say a small plane jumped the runway and slammed into his car. His daughter rushed to the scene.
“I just wanted to be with him and just be near him, because I loved him so much, and I know he loved me so much,” she said.
Her dad was 67 years old. Longhi called him “larger than life.”
“Even though he was such a big guy, he was so silly and good-natured, and always trying to make people laugh,” Longhi said.
She says he had plans, like spending time with his 1-year-old grandson, along with his wife and two kids.
“My dad did have more life to live. He had things that he still wanted to do, that we still wanted to do with him,” Longhi said. “It is so unfair and it's so senseless, but at the same time, I know my dad wouldn't want us to dwell on it and to just sit in despair.”
Ray was a family man from the start, according to Longhi.
“My dad and all his siblings were adopted,” she said. He is survived by his two siblings and his mother.
Longhi says because her father was adopted into a loving family in New York, the children’s home Sunshine Acres in Mesa holds a special place in heart.
Do you have a concern in your community or a news tip? We want to hear from you!
Connect with us: share@abc15.com
“I think the mission just really struck a chord,” Longhi said.
For kids separated from their families, Sunshine Acres provides a safe place and caring guardians. Ray donated frequently. Now the family asks 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 quietly grieves, they also grapple with so many questions.
“We’re devastated, we’re confused,” Longhi said. “We want to know what happened.”
Ray’s daughter now has a new perspective on loss.
“My dad was just more than the way he died. The way he lived was just the most special thing I've ever been able to witness,” she said. “I just want people to just take a minute to hug their dad or hug their kids.”
Holding tight to little moments, in a sea of memories.
Anyone who wants 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.
