Ray Ibbotson was born in Catasauqua to Harry and Naomi (née Brutt) Ibbotson. The family moved to Slatington in the 1930s, and Raymond attended Slatington High School beginning in 1935. There he was a three-sport athlete, playing baseball, basketball and football. In November 1938, the Ibbotson family moved back to Catasauqua, and in September 1939, Raymond married Catherine Edwards (1919-2018) of Slatington. They had two children, a son and a daughter. The family eventually made its home on Walnut Street in Slatington.
According to an obituary, Raymond worked for twenty years for the Chestnut Ridge Railroad, a subsidiary of the New Jersey Zinc Company in Palmerton. He was also an ambulance driver in Slatington.
Raymond and Catherine were buried in Fairview Cemetery, Slatington.