Ray Downs Memorial

8/9/2019 Ray Downs Memorial

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SPRING 2009 the ambassador the ambassador SPRING 20094

eaturesRAY DOWNS 50

eaturesRAY DOWNS 50

Ray

RememberingRay throughmemories and

photographs

Downs 50

Mr. Downs li etime associationwith ASIJ as a student and later as a teacher and headmaster is so special and his desire tohave classes related to Japaneseculture that began in 61 seemedto ourish over the decades; theKansai trip that November o 61to Kamakura, Nara, Kyoto, Nagoyaand Osaka with the historical andcultural sites with castles andtemples and traditional ryokanmade that Thanksgiving gettogether with Japanese cuisine afeld trip to remember. Mr Downsgoal o having ASIJers know andappreciate more o Japan is alasting and ongoing tribute to aneducator who really cared aboutcultural a airs.

James McGrane 63

Having worked and socialized with Ray while teaching at ASIJ in 1972-73, I caneasily say that I have never met a fner man. He and Vicky more or less adoptedmy wi e and me along with our three children. We spent a couple o wonder ulsummers with them in Nojiri where we sailed, played tennis, and traveled with Ray.Because o him and Vicky our amily had the best possible experience in Japan.We will never orget him and his unswerving riendship and generosity. All thewords used to describe an exceptional man ft Ray per ectly: compassion, warmth,honesty, humor, tolerance, grace, loyalty, intelligence, competence and empathy tomention just a ew. The memory o being his riend will remain with us always.

Mary Jane and Richard Hage

This is di fcult or me to write. I keep seeingall o my old riends passing away and now,

Ray. We came to ASIJ in the all o 1959, androm our frst aculty meeting, I knew that Raywas a very special person. He had the schoolswide interest at heart and he had the sincerity,intelligence, and determination to bring outthe best in the school. I can think o no other person who did more or ASIJ than Ray. Raywill be truly missed by all o us.

Don Berger (Former Faculty)


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the ambassador SPRING 20096 SPRING 2009 the ambassador

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As I watched the preview o thisyears spring musical in the RicketsonTheater earlier today it lookslike it will be another entertainingper ormance I couldnt help

eeling Rays presence and hearinghis amazing laugh in the RT. Over the many years I overlapped withRay on the Cho u campus, I had thewonder ul ortune o sitting within

a row or two o him at a musicalper ormance many times frst as astudent, and then as a ellow acultymember. I I ended up being in theRT when he and Vicky were in theaudience, I tried to sit near them iat all possible. Through his in ectiouslaughter and enthusiastic applause(and Vicky was no less responsive!),Ray made the audience experience or those around him twice as enjoyable.

In so many ways, this was thesame way he tried to live his li eand have a positive impact on thosearound him. He was a servant teacher,mentor and leader who intuitivelytried to bring out the best in others.Besides my parents, I cannot think oany one person who was a greater role model or me. Ray embodiedthe very best o what ASIJ tried (andstill tries to) instill in students and inthe community as a whole. Just toname a ew: insatiable curiosity andlove o learning, genuine compassion

or others, impeccable integrity,a knowledge o and ondness or Japan the list could go on and on.

But lets not get too serious here.Above all, it was his love o li e andlaughter even when he shanked

a gol ball into the woods o Nojirior when he poked un at himselabout one thing or another thatmade him so endearing and loved byus all. We miss you greatly, Ray. Butyou will never be orgotten. We recallwith ondness and celebrate all thewonder ul memories.

Tim Olson 73

Ray was a kind and thought ul man. He steered the school through the70s and 80s with gentle leadership. He truly cared about each one o us, asteachers, as colleagues, as riends. He cared about how you elt and how hecould help you, even i it was just to give you his ull attention and listeningear. By example, he was a wonder ul ather and husband; a amily man. Andthe school was also his amily, as a student, a teacher and fnally, Headmaster.He was man o action when needed, but a man o integrity and kindness frstand oremost. Thank you, Ray, or being there or all o us. We will miss you.

Karen Seevers (Faculty)

At the end o 1980, the admin team lead byHeadmaster Ray Downs decided that ALL

aculty and sta should be a coach or club/activity advisor. Ray chose to be my high schoolboys assistant. He had played at Oberlin, Ithink, and was very supportive o me as thehead coach. Our other assistant was businessmanager Stu Cole, so we had all the soccer balls we needed and the feld was always linedper ectly by the sta , not by me!

John OLeary (Faculty)

From the frst oggy day thatRay, then a teenager, met our boatload o J-3s at the dock inYokohama, ushered us throughcustoms, then drove us throughthe maze o tra fc to his warmwelcoming home: throughthe days, years later, when hecame down to help us start theNagoya International School,and through the happy dayssailing together on Lake Nojiri,Ray was always like a ray osunshine brightening our lives.

The warmth o these memorieswill live on in our hearts orever.And what could be a better wayto have eternal li e? Heres toour Ray o shining sunshine.

Peyton Palmore(Alumni Parent)


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the ambassador SPRING 200910 SPRING 2009 the ambassador

eaturesRAY DOWNS 50

eaturesRAY DOWNS 50

May 2, 2009 ASIJ MemorialLike all o us, I eel ortunate tohave known Ray Downs. I was

a student o his in high school,

but long be ore I entered his

classroom I had known him

through my parents (they were

in a book group with the Downs

or years) and Vicky who most o

us know as the greatest librarianto walk this earth. I think I speak

or a whole generation o ASIJ

kids who can trace their love o

reading and curiosity about the

world to sitting cross-legged

on the oor in rapt attention to

her description o this weeks

selected books.

By the time I attended my

frst India and East Asia class, I

thought I was knowledgeable

about many things Asian, having

grown up there. Well within

minutes I realized I had much to

learn, and Ray was such a great

teacher. His standards were

always high, but he was always

so understanding and supportive.

It was my great privilege to have

known him.

Dave Worth 74

1. Eric 84, Vicky and Constie 81 Downs. 2. Dave Fuji 83 and Leslie Okada Birkland 66. 3. Former aculty members

Hiroko OLeary and Chikako Hisa . 4. Stella Chen, Steve Mita, Che Watanabe, Bill Shang 75, Shang Yasuda 14 and

ormer aculty Ki Nimori. 5. Current aculty members John Seevers, Gene Witt, Roger Onions and John OLeary. 6.

Current aculty member Tim Olson 73 and Alan Gleason 69.

Documents

Ray Downs Memorial