D. Ray Wilson, former publisher of the Elgin Daily Courier News and a longtime community leader, dedicated time and energy to many educational and civic groups.
“He was extraordinarily powerful in his spirit,” said his daughter, Margaret Phares. “He had an extraordinary enthusiasm and a real ability to help people believe in their own abilities.”
Mr. Wilson, 77, of Sleepy Hollow, a longtime Judson College trustee, died of heart failure Tuesday, Dec. 2, in the University of Chicago Hospitals.
Mr. Wilson was born and raised in Riverdale, Calif. He served stateside as a paramedic during World War II and re-enlisted with the Army Air Forces, working in public relations at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. His first journalism experience was working on the base newspaper, his daughter said.
After the military he worked at a newspaper in McCook, Neb. He worked in advertising for Copley Press Inc. at newspapers in California before joining the Courier News in 1970. He later added duties as publisher of the Wheaton Daily Journal.
Mr. Wilson led the newspapers into the computer age, said Alice McCoy, his former administrative assistant.
He believed in teamwork and didn’t micromanage, she said. “He really let his managers do their job, but they were always accountable,” she said.
A Judson trustee for more than 30 years, Mr. Wilson was on the school’s strategic planning and personnel committees.
When the college faced a large pay increase a few years ago to meet salary benchmarks guaranteed to faculty, Mr. Wilson stood by the school’s promises despite a tight financial situation, said Judson President Jerry Cain.
“That made him a hero in my eyes,” Cain said.
Mr. Wilson also founded the school’s Golden Corridor Prayer Breakfast, an annual event that draws more than 200 community leaders, and received an honorary doctorate from Judson. He got a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Northern Illinois University in 1980.
Mr. Wilson spent many years as a Sherman Hospital trustee and was on the board of Sherman West Court, the hospital’s nursing facility. Mr. Wilson also was on the Board of Governors of State Colleges and Universities and was founder and former chairman of the VIP Council of Illinois, an advocacy group for seniors.
Mr. Wilson was a past commander of the Disabled American Veterans in Illinois and traveled to Belgorod, Russia, to negotiate a sister cities agreement for that city and Elgin. Over the years he made numerous trips to Russia, taking with him medical equipment and other supplies.
Mr. Wilson also wrote historical tour guides for Nebraska, Illinois and other states. After his retirement in 1991, he continued to write and publish through his own company, Crossroads Communications.
He wrote a book of his family’s history, “The Folks,” and recently was updating the story with a second volume.
Other survivors include his wife, Beatrice; two other daughters, Jeri Salzmann and Vicky Harrington; three brothers, William, Richard and Charles; four sisters, Barbara Crombie, Alice Wylie, Shirley and Diane; and eight grandchildren.
Visitation will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday in Laird Funeral Home, 310 S. State St., Elgin. A service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday in Herrick Chapel at Judson College, 1151 N. State St., Elgin.
