Raymond Steven Brazda Jr.

Raymond Steven Brazda, Jr. was born December 21, 1963, in Omaha, Nebraska to Raymond, Sr. and JoAnn (Olsufka) Brazda. Ray grew up in Waterloo, Nebraska and graduated from Waterloo High School in 1982. Ray was a member of the Waterloo Panthers football team (#52), and enjoyed playing the drums, pheasant hunting with his dad, and partying with his friends. Growing up, Ray knew the importance of time with his family, and he always looked forward to camping at the Louisville Lakes with his parents and sisters, attending family gatherings at Grandpa and Grandma Olsufka’s in Duncan, and even playing Barbies with Michelle. Ray worked a number of jobs in his life. He worked for All American Fundraising for a short time, worked for the state of Nebraska, where he really took to plowing snow, and made numerous long-time friendships. He then worked for the Village of Waterloo and the City of Yutan, Cornhusker Insulation, and most recently was a heavy equipment operator with Sudbeck Homes. Ray became a father at a young age to Juston and Holly, and later welcomed his daughter, Tawni to the family. He loved being a father, and was proud to marry Tracy Hussey on July 14, 2018, at Lake Platteview in Venice, Nebraska, and they made their home in Yutan. He was the Yin to Tracy’s Yang, and they had a calming effect on each other. Ray was her rock, and Tracy could count on him whenever, wherever, even if it was something he didn’t want to do. Ray was always up for a good party, and he was always the life of the party. Whether it was a Husker party, or watching the Chicago Bears, if Ray was there, there was going to be loud music, some beer to drink, and maybe the police would show up because of noise complaints. He loved hard rock music like Nickelback and Metallica, and his last concert was Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie, and he loved fast cars, even building his own Mustang, the louder and faster, the better. He looked forward to nachos and cheese dip on Thursdays at El Bee’s and couldn’t wait to turn on the Bears game. Ray was a helpful, hard-working, loving, caring, wild, and loyal man. He would hold Tawni’s hand when she was little and was just a phone call away if you needed any help. He could fix nearly anything, from car problems, to heating and air, to construction issues, he had a knack of figuring things out. He would visit Tawni every Friday at work, and was happy with her boyfriend, Aaron and her dog, Oakley. He was just happy and laughed all the time. You may have heard him say, “Hold my beer and watch this!”, and you may have watched him jump a sand pile on a golf cart after hearing him say that! He was known to greet his river friends with an emphatic “WOO!!” His other great words of wisdom were, “if you’re gonna be stupid, you’d better be tough”. Ray passed away unexpectedly on Thursday, October 31, 2024, at the age of 60 years, 10 months and 10 days. He is survived by his wife Tracy; children Juston (Swan) Brazda of Valley, NE, Holly (Michael) Negley of Waterloo, NE, and Tawni Brazda and her significant other, Aaron Pavlik of Arlington, NE; 7 grandchildren Tjaiden, Jaylee, Keegan, Kane and Luka Negley; Chloe and Abigail Brazda; stepsons Blake and Caleb Adams; parents Raymond, Sr. and JoAnn Brazda of Tilden, NE; sisters Kim Brazda of LaVista, NE and Michelle Brazda of Tilden, NE; nieces and a nephew. Ray’s funeral service will be Saturday, November 9, at 11 AM at Reichmuth Funeral Home, Elkhorn. Interment at Prospect Hill Cemetery of Elkhorn. Visitation will be at the funeral home in Elkhorn Friday from 5-7 PM. Memorials may be made to the family.

Raymond Steven Brazda Jr.

December 21, 1963 - October 31, 2024