Ray Redmond, 90, war veteran, journalist
Reporter played key role in earning Beacon Journal 1971 Pulitzer Prize
By Bill Lilley
Beacon Journal staff writer
Ray Redmond proved more than once he had a reporter's greatest gift — the knack for being on the scene for the big stories.
As an information officer in Gen. George Patton's U.S. 3rd Army, the quiet and unassuming Mr. Redmond was in France on June 6, 1944 — D-Day.
As a reporter for the Beacon Journal during the final chapter of his 34-year career in journalism, Mr. Redmond was at Kent State University on May 4, 1970 — the Kent State massacre.
Mr. Redmond, who died Thursday at 90, played a key role in the Beacon Journal earning the 1971 Pulitzer Prize for its Kent State coverage.
His widow, Nea Redmond, said the Portage County prosecutor had an FBI report that basically said the National Guard was not threatened enough to merit shooting. And because Ray had such a good relationship with him, the prosecutor told Ray the paper would be on his desk and he'd be out of his office.
''The swift reporter got to the paper and got the big story and that helped clinch the Pulitzer,'' she said. ''Ray wouldn't talk about it because he was too humble, but I'm thrilled to tell people what a great reporter and husband he was. We truly had a great life — 57 years — together.''
Mr. Redmond was born July 4, 1917, in Warren.
''He was a July 4th baby and it stayed with him his entire life,'' said Tessie Lazos, a family friend for six decades. ''Patriotism was a big theme in his life.
''No matter where he was, he always celebrated D-Day with a drink,'' she said.
Redmond began his career in journalism at the Akron Times Press near the end of the Great Depression.
He enlisted in the Army in 1942 and spent 31/2 years overseas chronicling the stories of Patton, first in the North Africa campaign against the Germans and Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and later in the liberation of France and the rest of Europe.
Return to journalism
Mr. Redmond returned to Akron after World War II and resumed his career at the Beacon Journal, which had bought the Times Press in 1938.
''He WAS the Portage County Bureau forever it seemed,'' said retired Beacon Journal assistant state desk editor John Olesky. ''He handled everything out there and did a great job. He also was a great guy.''
Mr. Redmond also was a mentor to young reporters.
''I loved him because he was the sweetest, kindest man you could ever work with,'' said Pam McCarthy, now a journalism teacher at North Canton Hoover High School. ''And he was the master of the understatement. He had a great sense of humor.''
Mr. Redmond retired from the Beacon Journal on March 29, 1975.
Besides traveling extensively, he and his wife were involved in the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church.
''He and Nea were big-time volunteers at the church, especially for the Gyro Luncheon we put on every Thursday,'' the Rev. Jerry Hall said. ''He was just a peach of a guy, a very gentle and kind-hearted man.''
Services will be 11 a.m. today at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church at 129 S. Union St., with burial at Rose Hill Burial Park.
[Beacon Journal, Akron, OH,Saturday, April 5, 2008, page B6, col. 1 ]
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