{"id":77413,"date":"2026-08-25T23:10:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T03:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/?p=77413"},"modified":"2026-08-25T23:10:21","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T03:10:21","slug":"did-you-know-ray-hollingsworth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/2026\/08\/25\/did-you-know-ray-hollingsworth\/","title":{"rendered":"DID YOU KNOW RAY HOLLINGSWORTH?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Crime Clues Connection<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

When you hear the name Hollingsworth in Lakeland, your mind may immediately go to Lake Hollingsworth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there is another Hollingsworth story in this city that deserves to be remembered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ray Hollingsworth has been without answers since 1984.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than four decades have passed, and his homicide remains unsolved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is a long time for a family to live with unanswered questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now I am asking Lakeland and Polk County to help us reach further into Ray\u2019s past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CORRECTION: I previously shared that Ray attended Lakeland High School. That was incorrect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ray graduated from Santa Fe High School in Lakeland in 1976, now known as Santa Fe Catholic High School.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I am especially asking people connected to the Santa Fe Class of 1976:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you know Ray Hollingsworth?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were you friends with him in school?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you stay in touch after graduation?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you know him through mutual friends?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you spend time with him socially?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you know the people Ray was around in the late 1970s or early 1980s?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were you still in contact with him as an adult?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were you at the ABC Lounge or familiar with that social circle in 1984?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you hear or see something back then that did not seem important at the time?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe you were young.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe you were unsure whether what you remembered mattered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe something was said years later that stuck with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe you have carried a memory for 42 years and never thought it could help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It still could.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ray was more than a case file.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was a son, one of only two sons his parents had.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A brother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A father to three children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A husband.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A loving uncle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A friend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He had classmates, friendships, relationships and an entire life before his name became attached to an unsolved homicide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes revisiting an old case means going back further than the night everything happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It means finding the classmates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The people who remember who knew whom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The people who may remember relationships, conversations, places or details investigators never had the chance to hear about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The February 15, 1984 Lakeland Ledger reported that witnesses said the driver of the 1980 Ford Pinto swerved toward Ray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That detail still matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone may remember who was at the ABC Lounge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone may remember who Ray was with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone may remember seeing the Pinto.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone may remember who had access to that vehicle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone may remember seeing it afterward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone may remember a conversation days, months or years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One small memory could still matter today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My goal is not to accuse anyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is not to embarrass anyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is not to turn speculation into fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My goal is simple:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Find the people who remember Ray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After 42 years, the person who helps move this case forward may simply be an old classmate, a former friend, or someone who remembers one detail they never thought was important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ray\u2019s story still matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His family still deserves answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And somewhere, someone may still remember something that helps bring clarity to what happened. \"\ud83d\udc94\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you attended Santa Fe High School around 1976, or know someone who did, please ask whether they knew Ray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even if you know absolutely nothing about his homicide, I still want to hear from people who knew Ray the person and stayed connected to him into adulthood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have information directly related to his homicide, please contact the Lakeland Police Department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you are uncomfortable speaking publicly, you can also reach out privately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You do not have to post anything publicly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even something small could matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#RayHollingsworth<\/a>#SantaFeHighSchool<\/a>#SantaFeCatholic<\/a>#ClassOf1976<\/a>#LakelandFlorida<\/a>#PolkCounty<\/a>#JusticeForRay<\/a>#UnsolvedCase<\/a>#ColdCase<\/a>#FloridaColdCase<\/a>#LakelandHistory<\/a>#CrimeCluesConnection<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Crime Clues Connection When you hear the name Hollingsworth in Lakeland, your mind may immediately go to Lake Hollingsworth. But there is another Hollingsworth story in this city that… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":77416,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","default_image_id":71799,"font":"","enabled":true,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvaTAud3AuY29tXC9sYWtlbGFuZGdhemV0dGUuaW5mb1wvbmV3c1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyNlwvMDhcLzc4NDYxNjg2NV8xMjIxMTUyNTMwNzEzMTg5ODZfNzc3NzczMTkyNDAzODkzNDgxOF9uLTEud2VicD9maXQ9NTI2JTJDNzg5JnNzbD0xIiwidHh0IjoiRElEIFlPVSBLTk9XIFJBWSBIT0xMSU5HU1dPUlRIPyIsInRlbXBsYXRlIjoiZG9pcyIsImZvbnQiOiIiLCJibG9nX2lkIjoxNjMwNDA2NjF9.43WyU9SKrg6mRrCbBn8VXUxeoqqCaIXOchtnBcR5Tt0MQ"},"version":2,"media_source":"sig","attached_media":[{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/jetpack.com\/redirect\/?source=sigenerate&query=t%3DeyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvbGFrZWxhbmRnYXpldHRlLmluZm9cL25ld3NcL3dwLWNvbnRlbnRcL3VwbG9hZHNcLzIwMjZcLzA4XC83ODQ2MTY4NjVfMTIyMTE1MjUzMDcxMzE4OTg2Xzc3Nzc3MzE5MjQwMzg5MzQ4MThfbi0xLndlYnAiLCJ0eHQiOiJESUQgWU9VIEtOT1cgUkFZIEhPTExJTkdTV09SVEg_IiwidGVtcGxhdGUiOiJkb2lzIiwiZm9udCI6IiIsImJsb2dfaWQiOjE2MzA0MDY2MX0.PzrACQHyXofbez-n4-NR9zZOpjhAfkRmBL9SavTxj9UMQ","type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[9],"tags":[237,16520,16523,16524,16519,16522,16521],"class_list":["post-77413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","tag-lakeland","tag-cold-case","tag-crime-clues-connection","tag-florida-cold-cases","tag-ray-hollingsworth","tag-santa-fe-catholic-high-school","tag-unsolved-homicide"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77413"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77413\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77417,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77413\/revisions\/77417"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77416"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}