Attorney Raymond John Sobota, 92, a resident of Forty Fort, passed into eternal life unexpectedly on Tuesday evening, August 25, 2020, at the Wilkes-Barre General Hospital.

His loving wife is Jane Ann (Speechley) Sobota. Raymond and Jane Ann would have celebrated their 44^th wedding anniversary on October 22^nd.

Born on February 07, 1928, in New York City, Raymond was the son of the late Andrew Sobota and Yolanda Schleicter Sobota, and he was baptized a Roman Catholic at Saint Elizabeth of Hungary Church, New York City.

Raymond received his early education at Mount Saint Joseph Military Academy, New York, where he graduated captain of Company A in 1941. He then went on to attend Mount Saint Michael Academy, New York, where he was captain of the cross-country team, and a member of its baseball and track teams, graduating from there in 1945.

In 1945, Raymond was awarded a track scholarship to the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana, where in 1949, he received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science. During his years at Notre Dame, he received 4 monograms from their track program, running the 880-yard run, the 440-yard run, and the mile relay. He then went on to attend Georgetown University Law School, where in 1952, he acquired his Juris Doctorate Degree.

A United States Coast Guard veteran, Raymond honorably served his country for three years during the Korean War. He began his service in Cape May, New Jersey, and went on to serve 1 ½ years in the legal office for the U.S. Coast Guard’s Philadelphia District, and served 1 ½ years in the legal office of the U.S. Coast Guard Commander – Third Coast Guard District, in New York City. Upon his honorable discharge from active service on January 06, 1955, he attained the rank of Yeoman 2^nd Class. He then went on to serve for 5 years in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve.

Attorney Sobota was admitted to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1953; the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and the District Court of Appeals; the Supreme Court of the United States; and all Luzerne County Courts. Throughout his career, he was associated with his son, Attorney John R. Sobota, in the Citizens Bank Building, Wilkes-Barre; served as a law clerk to the Honorable Paul Selecky for 3 years; served as Assistant to the Luzerne County Solicitor for 2 years; served as solicitor for the Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority for 19 years; was appointed Luzerne County Controller by former Governor Tom Ridge on May 07, 1996, to serve the balance of the term of Joseph Tirpak until December 31, 1997; served as Hearing Officer for the Domestic Relations Division of Luzerne County Court; served two terms on the Executive Committee of the Wilkes-Barre Law and Library Association, and served as its President from 1991-1992; served four terms as member of the House of Delegates for the Pennsylvania Bar Association; was a member of the Luzerne County Board of Censors; and was as a member of the Lawyers Pilots Bar Association since 1959, serving as its Pennsylvania State Chairman.

Raymond was a 30-year member of the West Side Lions Club, Kingston, serving a term as President; sat on the board of Luzerne County S.P.C.A. for 6 years, serving a term as president; served for 21 years on the Board of Notre Dame Monogram Club, serving as its president from 1991-1992; served as co-chairman of the Notre Dame Heritage Hall located on the 2^nd floor of the Joyce Athletic and Convocation Center which was dedicated in September of 1988; served two terms as president of the Notre Dame Club of Wilkes-Barre; and was a member of the “Leahy Lads” football alumni, serving on the Board of Directors of the Frank Leahy Scholarship Fund.

Some of Raymond’s favorite activities throughout his life were being a private pilot for over 50 years in a single engine land aircraft; being a (past) member of the Wyoming Valley Country Club and the Berwick Golf Club; being a 60-plus year member of the Wilkes-Barre YMCA; his time serving as president of the Anthracite Flying Club; being a member of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association for 55 years, serving on its legal panel; and as a young man, being a member of the Brookside Yanks Baseball Team.

A faithful Catholic, Raymond was a longtime member of the former Holy Trinity Church, Swoyersville. Following the consolidation of his church, he became a member Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Swoyersville.

In addition to his parents, Andrew and Yolanda Sobota, Raymond was preceded in death by his beloved son, Christopher B. Sobota, who passed away on February 04, 1988.

In addition to his wife, Jane Ann, Raymond is survived by his children, Ellen Edelson, Tampa, Florida; Attorney John R. Sobota, Forty Fort; and Diana M. Kovacs, Vorhees, New Jersey; his three grandchildren, Christina Kovacs, Caroline Kovacs, and Alek Edelson; and his loving friend and longtime secretary, Marlene Kerns.

Relatives and Friends are respectfully invited to attend Attorney Sobota’s Mass of Christian Burial which will be celebrated on Monday, August 31, 2020, at 10:00 AM in Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, 116 Hughes Street, Swoyersville, with the Reverend Joseph J. Pisaneschi, his Pastor, officiating.

Interment with the Rite of Committal will follow in Mount Olivet Roman Catholic Cemetery, Carverton section of Kingston Township, where Military Honors will be accorded by the United States Coast Guard.

In keeping with Attorney Sobota’s wishes, the viewing will be private for his immediate family.

Funeral Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of the Wroblewski Funeral Home, Inc., 1442 Wyoming Avenue, Forty Fort.

For additional information or to send the Sobota family an online message of condolence, you may visit the funeral home’s website, www.wroblewskifuneralhome.com, or Facebook page.

The Family has kindly asked that flowers be omitted. Memorial Contributions may be made in Raymond’s memory to the American Heart Association, 300 5th Avenue, Suite 6, Waltham, Massachusetts 02451.