Emil Silveira Obituary

Emil H. Silveira, age 89, of Sun City, AZ and formerly of Middletown, RI, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his loving family on November 6, 2025. Emil was born on December 28, 1935, in Newport, RI to the late Manuel and Rosaline Silveira. He was the husband of Dorothy (Dot) A. Ray.
Emil moved to New Jersey before he was a year old and spent his childhood there. He graduated from Lyndhurst High School in 1953. A talented baseball player, he tried out for the NY Yankees after high school graduation, but fate had other things in store. Emil moved back to Newport in 1955, where he went on to work as an automobile mechanic for George Ray at Ray's Auto Sales in 1956, and met the boss's daughter and love of his life, Dot Ray. After two months he gained the courage to ask Dot out and they had their first date on June 29, 1956.
As Dot was preparing to go to college, Emil considered enlisting in the Army, favoring enlisting over waiting to be drafted so he could choose his own work. In 1957, Emil joined the Army and was stationed in Alaska where he proudly served until being honorably discharged in 1959, after Alaska became a state.
Emil returned home to Newport, RI and married Dot Ray on September 5, 1960 at St. Joseph's Church. They would go on to raise four children: David, Jeanine, Beth, and Lynne. They happily spent a long 65 years of marriage together until his passing.
Emil worked at General Dynamics Electric Boat in Quonset, RI starting in 1974. He held many positions there from being a sheet metal worker to supervisory roles until his retirement in 1995. During that time, he seized the opportunity to earn his Associates Degree from CCRI, graduating from the program in 1986.
Emil was an honorary life member of the Knights of Columbus Council #256 for over 50 years. During his years in Newport, he was an avid fisherman, enjoying many fishing trips with his father-in-law, George Ray, on his boat in Narragansett Bay. More recently, near his and Dot's home in Sun City, AZ, he was a member of the Ventana Lakes Veterans and Italian American Clubs. A joyful and creative tinkerer, he kept busy with hobbies like woodworking and metalworking, puttering for long hours in his workshop. Emil was a dedicated genealogist during his retirement years, researching and forging wonderful new connections with members of both the Silveira and Ray sides of the family. He was a lifelong fan of both the New York Giants and the New York Yankees.
Remaining to cherish Emil's memory are his wife Dot (Ray), his son David (Kathleen) Silveira of Middletown, RI, and his daughters Jeanine Stewart of Crozet, VA, Beth Shanahan of Peoria, AZ, and Lynne Silveira (Mark Kluth) of East Greenwich, RI. Emil will be missed by his 9 grandchildren, Eleanor Stewart (Yuki Masuyama) and Margaret Stewart of VA; Brian (Patricia) Gloersen and Stephanie Shanahan of CT; Kevin Shanahan of AZ; Jillian, Benjamin, Jonathan and Lauren Brownell of RI; step-grandson Jacob (Stephanie) Sharp and step-great-grandchildren Peyton and Jace Sharp of RI. He is also survived by his son-in-law of 30 years, Robert Stewart of VA, his brother-in-law, Walter Ray (Charlene) of MN, and his sister Emily Signore of Lincroft, NJ.
Emil was predeceased by his sister, Mary Timosevich, and his brother James Silveira.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Emil's honor to a US Military veterans' organization of your choosing.
Funeral and memorial services to be announced at a later date.