Obituary for Raymond Christian Finke Jr.
Raymond Christian Finke, 73, who served more than fifty years as a public educator in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, died peacefully at his home in North Bend, Ohio, on May 16, 2022. Ray is survived by his wife of 31 years, Joyce (Elliott) Finke; daughter Meredith (Justin) Sanders, grandson Griffin Sanders, and granddaughter Lorelei Sanders of Fort Wright, Ky; sister Nancy (Bob) Bennett; nieces Sandy (Mike) Poettker and Cindy Bennett; nephews Kerry (Holly) Coombs, Kevin (Lisa) Coombs, Kris Coombs, and Brian (Yvette) Bennett. He was preceded in death by his beloved son Lucas Christian Finke (1979-2007), sister Patricia Coombs, brother-in-law Joe Coombs, and nephew Rob Bennett.
Ray was a proud lifelong Cincinnatian, born July 10, 1948, to Raymond C. Finke Sr. and Evelyn Finke. He graduated from Aiken High School in 1966 and earned his Bachelor’s degree in Education from the University of Cincinnati, in 1970. Ray later obtained a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from UC in 1973.
Ray was a fierce and devoted advocate of public education. He began his distinguished career as a Social Studies teacher at Campbell Junior High, Schwab Junior High, Cutter Junior High, and Walnut Hills. Ray became an administrator in 1978, serving as Assistant Principal, first at Gamble Middle School, then at Walnut Hills High School. In 1981, Ray returned to Gamble Middle, this time as Principal. From 1984-1992, Ray was Principal at Western Hills High School. For the next seven years, Ray worked as a lobbyist for Cincinnati Public Schools in the Ohio legislature. In that role, he worked tirelessly to increase state funding for the schools, and he represented the school district on the board of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy. During the 1990’s, Ray implemented a Student Leadership program for Cincinnati high school students, which included securing a $10,000.00 grant to support student participation at the American Youth Foundation’s International Leadership Conference each summer. Ray served one year as Director of Cincinnati Public Schools before retiring from the district in 2000. His career in the Cincinnati public school system spanned a total of 30 years.
Ray became Principal of Holmes Junior and Senior High Schools in Covington in 2000. In his 8 years at Holmes, Ray developed and implemented plans resulting in improvements in state test scores in all assessed areas. He received over $400,000.00 in grants from the Commonwealth of Kentucky and various corporate school support programs. Ray became Director of Covington Independent Public Schools in 2008. Beginning in 2013 and continuing until the time of his death, Ray served as Covington Independent’s Court Liaison/Compliance Director, preparing court documents and appearing in the Kenton County Family Court on behalf of the school district.
Ray received numerous honors and awards during his education career. Parents of his students nominated him for the Reader’s Digest “Heroes in American Education” program in 1990. Ray was twice nominated for the Phoebe Hearst National PTA Educator of the Year Award. In 1987, he won the Cincinnatus Society James N. Jacob Distinguished Administrator Award and was named Cincinnati Counsel of PTA’s Educator of the Year. In 1989, Ray was presented with a Key to City of Cincinnati by Mayor Charlie Luken and the Western Hills High School Alumni Association.
Ray was a die-hard fan of the Reds, Bengals, and his University of Cincinnati Bearcats. As any Cincinnati sports fan can attest, Ray’s devotion to his hometown teams came with plenty of heartache, but also filled him with tremendous joy and pride when the teams were successful. Ray’s favorite hobbies were fishing in his backyard pond and taking care of animals of all kinds. At any given time, Ray and his wife Joyce lived with multiple cats and/or dogs, and Ray spent much of his free time spreading corn and seed for the birds, deer, and other wildlife in the woods behind their home.
Ray was a family man and romantic at heart. He reserved every Saturday evening as “date nights” with Joyce. They enjoyed finding and sampling new and different Cincinnati-area restaurants each week, often followed by a show at the Aronoff Center. Ray treasured his time with his grandchildren, Griffin and Lorelei. He and Joyce frequently took them to the zoo or theater and would occasionally take them antiquing or on other adventures. One of Ray’s favorite traditions was hosting friends and colleagues with Joyce at their home during their annual Christmas party.
Visitation will be held Saturday, May 21st, in the auditorium at Western Hills High School, 2144 Ferguson Road, from 11:00 a.m. –2:00 p.m., and is open to the public. A service to celebrate Ray’s life will follow. Burial Monday at Bridgetown Cemetery. To share a memory of Ray or send a condolence to his family, please visit www.neidhardminges.com and sign the virtual guestbook. In lieu of flowers, Ray’s family requests that donations be made to the Red Wolf Sanctuary, P.O. Box 202, Rising Sun, IN 47040 (https://www.redwolf.org/general-donation).
Ray was a proud lifelong Cincinnatian, born July 10, 1948, to Raymond C. Finke Sr. and Evelyn Finke. He graduated from Aiken High School in 1966 and earned his Bachelor’s degree in Education from the University of Cincinnati, in 1970. Ray later obtained a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from UC in 1973.
Ray was a fierce and devoted advocate of public education. He began his distinguished career as a Social Studies teacher at Campbell Junior High, Schwab Junior High, Cutter Junior High, and Walnut Hills. Ray became an administrator in 1978, serving as Assistant Principal, first at Gamble Middle School, then at Walnut Hills High School. In 1981, Ray returned to Gamble Middle, this time as Principal. From 1984-1992, Ray was Principal at Western Hills High School. For the next seven years, Ray worked as a lobbyist for Cincinnati Public Schools in the Ohio legislature. In that role, he worked tirelessly to increase state funding for the schools, and he represented the school district on the board of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy. During the 1990’s, Ray implemented a Student Leadership program for Cincinnati high school students, which included securing a $10,000.00 grant to support student participation at the American Youth Foundation’s International Leadership Conference each summer. Ray served one year as Director of Cincinnati Public Schools before retiring from the district in 2000. His career in the Cincinnati public school system spanned a total of 30 years.
Ray became Principal of Holmes Junior and Senior High Schools in Covington in 2000. In his 8 years at Holmes, Ray developed and implemented plans resulting in improvements in state test scores in all assessed areas. He received over $400,000.00 in grants from the Commonwealth of Kentucky and various corporate school support programs. Ray became Director of Covington Independent Public Schools in 2008. Beginning in 2013 and continuing until the time of his death, Ray served as Covington Independent’s Court Liaison/Compliance Director, preparing court documents and appearing in the Kenton County Family Court on behalf of the school district.
Ray received numerous honors and awards during his education career. Parents of his students nominated him for the Reader’s Digest “Heroes in American Education” program in 1990. Ray was twice nominated for the Phoebe Hearst National PTA Educator of the Year Award. In 1987, he won the Cincinnatus Society James N. Jacob Distinguished Administrator Award and was named Cincinnati Counsel of PTA’s Educator of the Year. In 1989, Ray was presented with a Key to City of Cincinnati by Mayor Charlie Luken and the Western Hills High School Alumni Association.
Ray was a die-hard fan of the Reds, Bengals, and his University of Cincinnati Bearcats. As any Cincinnati sports fan can attest, Ray’s devotion to his hometown teams came with plenty of heartache, but also filled him with tremendous joy and pride when the teams were successful. Ray’s favorite hobbies were fishing in his backyard pond and taking care of animals of all kinds. At any given time, Ray and his wife Joyce lived with multiple cats and/or dogs, and Ray spent much of his free time spreading corn and seed for the birds, deer, and other wildlife in the woods behind their home.
Ray was a family man and romantic at heart. He reserved every Saturday evening as “date nights” with Joyce. They enjoyed finding and sampling new and different Cincinnati-area restaurants each week, often followed by a show at the Aronoff Center. Ray treasured his time with his grandchildren, Griffin and Lorelei. He and Joyce frequently took them to the zoo or theater and would occasionally take them antiquing or on other adventures. One of Ray’s favorite traditions was hosting friends and colleagues with Joyce at their home during their annual Christmas party.
Visitation will be held Saturday, May 21st, in the auditorium at Western Hills High School, 2144 Ferguson Road, from 11:00 a.m. –2:00 p.m., and is open to the public. A service to celebrate Ray’s life will follow. Burial Monday at Bridgetown Cemetery. To share a memory of Ray or send a condolence to his family, please visit www.neidhardminges.com and sign the virtual guestbook. In lieu of flowers, Ray’s family requests that donations be made to the Red Wolf Sanctuary, P.O. Box 202, Rising Sun, IN 47040 (https://www.redwolf.org/general-donation).