Billie Lee Ray, former first lady of Iowa, died Wednesday, Feb. 18. She was 97.
The wife of former Gov. Robert Ray, she was known for her philanthropy, her support of numerous charitable organizations and her role as a loving mother who raised three daughters.
But to David Oman, a former press secretary and chief of staff for Gov. Ray, Billie Ray was a genuine political partner to her late husband, who died in 2018 at the age of 89.
In fact, it was Billie Ray who served as a surrogate candidate for her husband during his first campaign after he was injured in airplane crash in northern Iowa in 1968 during the primary.
Oman recalls the one request she made of her husband after he decided to run for governor — don’t ask her to give any speeches.
But with Bob Ray temporarily sidelined by injuries suffered in the crash, it was Billie Ray who was pressed into service on the campaign trail.
“For a certain amount of time, he wasn’t able to campaign at all. He had to recover and then get back on the trail. So guess who the campaign turned to fulfill his obligations to speak — Mrs. Ray,” Oman said.
“She really carried the flag for him towards the end of the primary and into the beginning of the general election campaign through the summer, and people fell in love with her, and so from that, she went around the state quite a bit. She was a popular first lady, people wanted to hear her.”
In a statement, Gov. Kim Reynolds said the former first lady “set a remarkable example of grace, leadership, and service to others.”
“… Billie’s kindness and spirit will be remembered by all who knew her, and her impact on Iowa’s children, women, families, and communities will live on for generations to come. Kevin and I are keeping her family in our thoughts and prayers.”
Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart also praised her contributions.
“Billie Lee Ray represented the best of Iowa through her philanthropic and charitable work,” Hart said in a statement. “She was a public servant through-and-through who was beloved by so many Iowans.”
Oman said Billie Ray was a true political partner of her husband and elevated the position of the state’s First Lady to a more modern, higher profile role.
Billie Ray was also instrumental in establishing Terrace Hill as the Governor’s mansion after it was gifted to the state by the Hubbell family while Robert Ray was in office.
In a 1982 interview, Billie Ray talked about finding Mason jars and little else in the cupboards of Terrace Hill when they moved in, so she made restoring the mansion part of her legacy.
While the state allocated some money for the mansion restoration and some private donors chipped in, the old residence needed a lot of work, said Oman.
And Billie Ray went about raising money for Terrace Hill’s restoration in the most Iowan sort of way.
“Mrs. Ray prepared a cookbook with great recipes from Iowans all over the state and produced a splendid cookbook, very colorful, content-rich, popular, and went all over the state and promoted the cookbook and sold cookbooks and the proceeds went to the restoration of Terrace Hill so the people of Iowa who didn’t know her by then, many did, fell in love with her all over again,” Oman said.
Billie Lee Hornberger met her Bob Ray while the two attended Roosevelt High School in Des Moines and married on Dec. 22, 1951. Both were graduates of Drake University. Following graduation, Billie Ray taught elementary education in the Des Moines Public School system.
When Bob Ray was elected governor of Iowa in 1968, she began her tenure as first lady, a title she held from 1969 to 1983. Her legacy continues at several organizations to which she devoted her time and passion, including the Terrace Hill Foundation, Iowa Friendship Force, the Cedar Rapids Symphony, the historic Brucemore in Cedar Rapids, the Red Cross, Easter Seals, United Way, Women in Business, Iowa Save Your Vision, Des Moines Civic Center, Blank Park Zoo Foundation and Drake University.
In 2015, what was previously the organization known as CHARACTER COUNTS! in Iowa transitioned to The Robert D. and Billie Ray Center at Drake University. The Ray Center continues to fulfill a mission to improve civility through character development and ethical leadership.
The work of The Ray Center extends from early childhood to the corporate, community, and public service arenas, honoring the legacy of leadership of the Rays.
Billie Lee was born May 16, 1928, in Columbus Junction. Her parents lived in the Des Moines area at the time, but she was born there while her parents were visiting relatives, Oman said.
“Mrs. Ray was a genuinely fun person. She was full of energy and joy, and she was a wonderful partner for the governor,” Oman said.
Billie Ray is survived by her three daughters, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Services are being arranged through Iles Dunn’s Chapel, and more information will be released soon at www.IlesCares.com.
Kevin Baskins covers jobs and the economy for the Register. Reach him at kbaskins@registermedia.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Former Iowa first lady Billie Ray dies at age 97
Reporting by Kevin Baskins, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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