Rae McConnell

Alfred Raeburn “Rae” McConnell, Jr., 84, of New Albany, passed away peacefully on March 12, 2026, in the care of Gentiva Hospice at Baptist Memorial Hospital in New Albany following a recent illness and courageous battle with cancer. Born in Tupelo on March 13, 1941, to the late Alfred Raeburn McConnell and Elizabeth Milam McConnell, he was a lifelong member of First United Methodist Church.

Rae spent his early elementary years at the Woods School in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, where he received specialized education in a residential setting. He returned to Tupelo in the third grade, graduated from Tupelo High School in 1960, and briefly attended Itawamba Junior College. With a passion for broadcasting, he trained at Keegan’s School of Broadcasting in Memphis, earning his Radio Operator’s Third Class License. He worked as a DJ at WTUP and WELO in Tupelo, WBIP in Booneville, and WJAM and WAMA in Alabama. Later, drawn to photography, he returned to Tupelo to work in the camera department at J.C. Penney when the Downtown Mall opened. After retiring, he moved to New Albany in 1992 to be near family. An avid photographer and videographer, Rae generously captured vacations, holidays, and family gatherings, leaving his loved ones with a rich visual record of cherished memories.

He was preceded in death by his parents. Rae is survived by his sister, Betsey Hamilton (Tom) of New Albany; his nephew, Haywood Hamilton (Lisa) and their children, Ellie and Thomas of Marietta, Georgia; and his nieces, Beth Hamilton of Jackson, Mississippi, and Sarah Vogel (Ross) and their son Hamilton of Mission Hills, Kansas.