Bank Of Putnam County Leader Laid To Rest

The family of Jack Ray conducted private graveside services for the former Bank Of Putnam County Chairman Sunday.

The 84-year-old Ray passed away Friday at his home. A celebration of life service will be held at a later date.

Ray returned to Monterey after graduating law school at the University of Virginia. He planned to practice law, but a death in the family changed his course. He would spend the rest of his life building the bank his grandfather started. Ray said at first the bank simply served residents who, otherwise, would have had to travel 20 to 30 miles to take care of bank business. As he learned more about banking, Ray called it a “challenge” in a 2019 interview.

The life-long member of Monterey United Methodist Church termed his philosophy of life as simple.

“It’s more or less the golden rule,” Ray said in 2019. “You do unto others as you’d have them to do to yourself.”

Ray’s family requests donations be made to Monterey United Methodist Church or Backpack Ministries.