Ray, an exceedingly lively person devoted to the theater, music, and poetry, died Sept. 15, 2020, at his home in Kirkcudbright (Kuh-KOO-Bree), Scotland. He was born Oct. 6, 1932, in Pretoria, South Africa, son of Ray Purdy Sr., who was in the Class of 1920. Before Princeton he graduated from Hollywood High School in California, where he was head cheerleader.

At Princeton he joined Quadrangle Club and majored in history. Although at that time he had no connection with Scotland, he took up the bagpipes and loved to play them frequently around campus, which was said to have irritated President Dodds, who lived on campus at Prospect. Ray also took up rowing all four years, earning two varsity P’s on the lightweight crew that was undefeated in his freshman and sophomore years and set a course record at Henley.

He traveled internationally, moved to Los Angeles, and in 1978 moved to Vermont, where he established a business designing and building kitchens. He immersed himself in music and theater, directing and building sets for more than 60 local theater productions.

In 2000 Ray and his wife, Lesley, moved to Scotland to be near her family. His son Donald described him as “a gentleman, and a gentle man. He made everyone around him better than before.”

Ray is survived by Lesley, daughter Anne Morell ’92, son Donald, and three grandchildren.

Undergraduate Class of 1955