Ray, along with his wife, Pauline, became active in the veteran community many years ago. Ray has held positions at all levels within the State’s RSL. He was born in Babinda, North Queensland, the eldest of 4 siblings. His Father served in the Army in WW2 and fought many battles in New Guinea, Borneo, Balikpapan. He was part of the British Occupational Force in Japan after WW2. Ray’s other family members served in other WW2 theatres. Ray joined the RAN at 15 years old and served over 20 years full time attaining the rank of Chief Petty Officer. During his naval service he did 7 trips to Vietnam and served on numerous ships including the HMAS Sydney, HMAS Melbourne, and HMAS Brisbane. On June 03, 1969, whilst in the South China Sea, the Melbourne collided with the USS Frank F Evans killing 74 Americans. Ray left the navy in the mid-1980s to become involved in law enforcement, working for the NSW Police Force. Ray performed many frontline duties including defensive tactics, public order specialist training. In the Queen’s Birthday Honours List, Ray was awarded the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for his work in the veteran’s community. Ray is the proud son of a veteran; his son is a veteran as is his son-in-law and now his grandson has joined the Navy. Ray is still working for the RSL through some challenging times and is working on strategies to ensure the RSL remains the premier Ex-Service Organisation.