Ray was born and was raised by his mother and his grandparents in Brooklyn and East New York. After high school he attended NYC Technical College and went on to work for the NYC Department of Transportation. With a desire for life change and more experience he joined the Army National Guard. Little did he know this experience would include a “battlefield” conversion and a new purpose for life.
Ray served in the Army for 21 years with tours in Bosnia during Operation Noble Eagle and in Iraq during Operation Enduring Freedom. After ten years at the NYDOT he joined the NYPD where he served for 20 years as an officer and detective in some of NYC’s toughest neighborhoods. His greatest joy with the NYPD was community engagement. These interactions fueled his desire to mentor young men and help others fight through adversity to realize their full potential.
Ray’s work with youth has garnered him recognition by the New York City Police Foundation where he received the Dale Hermerdinger Award for “Community Service.” In 2021, he co-authored a collaborative book entitled The Reveal an Analogy. Ray’s chapter “Full Circle” is a chronicle of his life’s journey to manhood and finding his purpose.
Today Ray spends his “retired” years mentoring young men and working with Inspire Sports Camps to develop new urban partnerships. He is a also a minister at his home church, Bethel Gospel Tabernacle in Jamaica, Queens. He and his wife, Princess, reside in Long Island.