Ray Rottas

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Raymond G. "Ray" Rottas (born October 20, 1927 in Cleveland , Ohio , † July 11, 2011 ) was an American officer , flight instructor and politician ( Republican Party ).

Career

Ray Rottas was born in Cuyahoga County in 1927 . His youth were overshadowed by the Great Depression and the following years by World War II . Rottas moved to Arizona in 1945 . He joined the United States Armed Forces at the age of 18 . He served in the Korean War . While on duty in Korea, he drove his jeep into a shell hole . In doing so, he smashed four of his vertebrae. As a result, he was assigned to the reserve. Rottas could have continued his military career, but as a man who flew planes in the Korean War, he was not interested in a desk job. So he said goodbye. At that time he was a colonel in the United States Air Force (USAF). He remained loyal to flying. In the following years he worked as a flight instructor. He had his pilot's license until the 1970s.

In the 1950s he met his future wife Barbara. A doctor introduced them to him. She was then 20 years old. The marriage would last for nearly 55 years until his death. The couple had at least four children: two daughters, Donna and Diane, and two sons, Paul and Steve.

Rottas served in the Arizona Senate from 1971 to 1974 and 1977 to 1982 . During his tenure, he chaired and sat on many committees, including the Senate Finance Committee. Rottas helped implement tax reform and a variety of school funding reforms. He also helped pass an amendment to the state constitution to limit spending for the state government. From 1982 to 1990 he was State Treasurer of Arizona. During this time he modernized the office with computers, which is taken for granted these days. In 1990 he ran unsuccessfully for the post of Secretary of State of Arizona.

He was diagnosed with Alzheimer's three years before his death .

Rottas lived in Paradise Valley, Arizona. His burial took place in Arlington National Cemetery in the US state of Virginia .

Trivia

According to his son Paul, his father was a great communicator who left no doubt what he wanted and achieved it with a measure of respect and dignity:

“When we were growing up, it was short haircuts, and it was 'yes sir, no sir, yes ma'am, no ma'am.' I learned how perceptive he was. But that, I learned later in life. "

“When we were growing up, it was the short haircuts and it was 'yes sir, no sir, yes ma'am, no ma'am.' I learned how astute he was. But I learned that later. "

His son Paul said the following about his father's political activities:

"With civil service he loved the doing and not the politics. He believed in getting things done behind the scenes and it was the same way at home as well. "

“In the public service he loved doing and not politics. He believed in doing things behind the scenes and that's exactly how it was at home. "

The Governor Rose Mofford said the following about him:

“He was very patriotic. He had such a stately appearance when he visited my office. "

“He was very patriotic. He looked so handsome when he visited my office. "

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Annual Bulletin - United States Air Force Academy , Department of Defense, Department of the Air Force, Air Force Academy, 1980, p. 78

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Rottas, Ray
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Rottas, Raymond G.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American officer, flight instructor, and politician
DATE OF BIRTH October 20, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH Cleveland , Ohio
DATE OF DEATH July 11, 2011