Posted by Roger Kashlak on June 25, 2008:

Ray Sixteen years ago, I was invited to Loyola to interview for a position. That day, after meeting the department, I still had one last professor to visit. I was led into a nook in Jenkins Hall and there sat an imposing figure ……. Professor Ray Jones. He looked up and slowly asked … “St Joseph’s Prep?” I said “yes sir” (he seemed to command a “sir”) And Dr. Jones replied… “Me too…. And Fr. Sellinger!!!.” And then he smiled… that big, embracing smile that we all know….. His embracement continued during my years at Loyola. And I have seen that same embracement with our colleagues and students throughout our campuses…. Loyola College indeed was Ray’s home….. It took him a few different careers and even more academic degrees to get here. But he did arrive….. and he loved it here more than you can imagine. From Father Brown, we have heard about the significance of Faith and Family in Ray’s life…… Integrate education, work ethic, service to others, and friendship and you wind up with ….. a mosaic of core values that defined our friend….. Ray celebrated education…. Think of what he accomplished ……. An undergraduate degree from West Point, an MBA from Harvard….. a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland. Even with all of that, he was still….…….. Wistful…… He thought that to attend Oxford ----- and study Philosophy ------ would be the icing on his academic cake. Imagine Dr. Jones… in full academic regalia… wandering England…. looking so professorial….What a sight!! Ray started life in West Philadelphia in St. Agatha’s parish living with nine family members…. above his grandfather’s barber shop…... Driving through that Fairmount Avenue neighborhood recently, I imagined just how hard- working and visionary were his grandparents and parents to ensure that Ray and his siblings became who they did? And then came a move to St. Matt’s parish in Northeast Philadelphia ……. a tremendous change from West Philly in those days……. That led to one of the two schools that truly influenced Ray’s life… St. Joseph’s Prep…... Of course, he insufferably called it “THE Prep” ….as if no other prep schools existed…… There, he connected with Jesuit education and the Jesuit spirit…. both became his constant life companions ….. For him, the roots of service --- which he cared about so deeply as evidenced by his recent work with Cristo Rey here in Baltimore ----- were born at the Prep. At this point, I must extend thanks to the late Jack Kelly. It seems that while still in Philadelphia, young Ray was sculling on the Schuylkill River and someone tossed a brick off of a bridge that knocked our friend out cold. It was Councilman Kelly - an Olympic oarsman and brother of Princess Grace- who was able to rescue Ray from the water and preserve the friend who was to make all of our lives richer. After graduation from THE Prep,…. Ray was accepted at the U.S. Military Academy and chose to attend THE Point ……..Yes… I Know,… we all had to deal with THE Point as well as THE Prep…... This is the second school that shaped Ray’s life ….. Duty, honor, trust and leadership sprung from his experiences here. He took these ideals seriously….…. Every single one of his relationships was founded upon trust. After graduation from The Point in 1964, 2nd Lt. Jones was off to Vietnam. He volunteered to command an embattled yet strategically critical battery ….and during the next few years turned that unit around to such a degree that he was awarded the Army Commodation Medal personally by General William Westmoreland for leading the Best Battery in….. you may figure I’m going to say Vietnam here…. Or Southeast Asia……… And you would be wrong….. Two promotions later, Captain Jones was decorated for leading the “Best Battery in the Entire Free World.” ….. Oh yes… he also picked up a Bronze Star for bravery and meritorious service along the way. What does a war hero do after his tour of duty? … Why…. Go to Harvard for an MBA…. And then on to UT Austin to complete his law degree in just two years. His time in Cambridge was significant in two respects. … First, as a research assistant, the future Dr. Jones developed an even deeper passion for academia…. Second, the work of his classmate, Michael Porter, became a major theoretical influence in Ray’s own research and teaching. After these degrees, Ray joined Occidental Petroleum as a top-level Executive. Among his accomplishments with Oxy (I’m glad he did not call it THE Oxy),… were… correcting the Love Canal situation in Buffalo, leading the most massive restructure of overseas operations of its time from his base in Geneva, Switzerland. And finally came academia…... Ray cherished doing his Ph.D. and absolutely loved becoming a professor. It was the culmination of so much education, experience and effort. When he received the positive Tenure decision at Loyola 12 years ago, he left a one-word message on my phone …. “Yes!!!” ….…. After years of many successful initiatives, he had found not only the perfect profession…. but the perfect home within that profession …. And with tenure, he knew that it was a personal commencement… to lead…. to mentor… and to serve. Through all of his high school, military, corporate and academic accomplishments, of most significance to Ray has been Bobbie by his side…. He knew that they formed a remarkable team and everything he accomplished he shared credit with her….….. In his 1997 Strategic Management book,… he concisely but power-fully wrote “Nothing can ever erase my debt to my wife Bobbie.” …. When he spoke of her to me, his tone dramatically changed. When he looked at her, his gaze lovingly softened….. And when he held hands with her --- as seen in the photo taken by a student in Paris ---- it was the most romantic sight imaginable. And… he had the time and love to be the doting and caring father to Andrea and Audra. He took pride in the schools where they excelled ……... He constantly bubbled with joy and admiration of their significant accomplishments --- in many fields --- but especially those that made the world better for so many others less fortunate …. Their friends were his children…. He was happy that as a family, they experienced the entire United States and many places overseas…. He danced at Audra’s wedding last year…….. He knew that he and Bobbie gave their daughters the tools and experiences to change the world. I will miss his face lighting up every time he spoke of “his girls.” I will also miss playing the role of his “bratty brother.” I will miss encouraging his naïve students to rave about the Naval Academy, Wharton, and LaSalle High…. All rivals of the schools he attended….. I will miss referring to Harvard as Penn’s safety school….. I will miss leaving “Mintzberg kicks Porter’s Butt” notes in his classroom……..… I will miss being the chatty, non-sequitur-ish Gracie Allen to his calm George Burns as we did extemporaneous schtick in his classes with him eventually suggesting… “Say goodbye Roger.” I will miss my impatience when, after asking Ray for the time, he would proceed to build the clock that only a proficient storyteller could….. I would have to sit through anecdotes about his Professors such as Lee Preston and Mancur Olsen --- or his Prep classmate, Bernie Maguire --- or one of his many Oxy or West Point friends…. All I wanted was a quick answer….. Still, this was his way of showing just how special his friendships were…. He never forgot any of his friends…… …. any of You here today. I will miss my research collaborator of 18 different papers…. I will miss his lack-of-typing skills….. I will also miss seeing Ray’s reliance on and deep trust of Mary as they worked seamlessly together on department or international study initiatives. I will even miss his frustration regarding the arguments in the academic world that he saw as petty and never did fully understand. My son Jake, who will begin Loyola this fall and whose culminating high school project was mentored by Dr. Jones during these last two years, concluded in his college essay….…. “Take a deep breath of life my dear friends and consider… at every moment … how it should be lived.” When he read this, Dr. Jones’ smile broadened for he himself was indeed the man who understood… at every moment…. how life should be lived… with honor, with compassion, with confidence, with faith, with trust, with loyalty, with laughter….. and…… with love. And speaking of love…. Let’s go back to that first day at Loyola. Ray walked me to my meeting with Fr. Sellinger…. Knowing the St. Joe’s Prep connection, I was confident and maybe even a bit smug….. Then Fr. Sellinger threw a curve and asked ……. “Do you love your students?” …. I felt like Golda in Fiddler on the Roof when Tevya sings… Do You Love Me? … Similar to Golda, I wanted to answer Fr. Sellinger by saying…… Do I what ?????????????? But to this day, when I think of that question …. the answer is quite simple..… I think of Professor Ray Jones… Look at how proud he was when his students “got it” … whatever the “it” was. Look at the hours he spent with his students outside of class to help them crystallize both their college and post-college plans. And look at his joy when something good happened to his students and the sorrow when things did not turn out so well. As Professor Jones truly loved his students, they in turn loved him... During the first semester when Ray became sick, many of his former students sent in lessons learned so that we could compile them into a book for him ….. The love -- for the Ray & Bobbie team ---- that came through in those messages was overwhelming…. The lessons learned went far beyond strategy and international business … They were profound lessons of how one should live life….. My favorite was from a student who graduated 12 years ago and simply said….. “As I walked across the stage to receive my diploma at graduation, I thought of you, Dr. Jones.” And now what?? …. Let’s continue to celebrate …. celebrate at every moment... the life of Professor Ray Jones: Husband… Father…. Son …. Brother…. Brother-in-law… Father-in-Law…. Uncle…. Friend…. Mentor….. Soldier… Officer… Hero…. Executive …. Entrepreneur… Attorney… Expatriate… Teacher…. Scholar….. Strategist… Department Chair…. Oarsman… Boxer…. Global Traveler….. Lover of Fine Wines and Even Finer Hotels….... Storyteller ….and……. The Ultimate Man for Others. Let each of us celebrate his incredible and unmatched life that he lived so well …..and continue his lessons learned through our own caring, compassionate and selfless actions …….to each other…. to our colleagues….. to our students….. and within our communities…….. I promise if we do this….... that big, embracing smile of his will never fade.

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