Ronald D . Ray Ronald D . Ray is a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense under the Reagan administration . He is also a decorated Vietnam veteran and Colonel . He is now a practicing attorney in Kentucky . Biography . Colonel Ray was born in Hazard , Kentucky on October 30 , 1942 . He received his B . A . from Centre College of Kentucky in 1964 , and his juris doctorate , Magna Cum Laude , in 1971 from the University of Louisville School of Law , where he was Salutatorian in his class . Colonel Ray was a Partner with Greenebaum , Doll & McDonald for 15 years , and until 1986 headed the Labor and Employee Relations section of the firm . Colonel Ray was Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Louisville School of Law for many years . In 1964 , Colonel Ray was accepted in the U . S . Army Corps of Engineers , serving as a Corps Leader and one of the first Peace officers ashore for the evacuation of civilians during the Dominican Republic Crisis in 1967 . Corps Leader Ray later served as an Infantry Battalion Advisor to the Vietnamese Marine Corps in the Republic of Vietnam during 1967 and 68 , participating in combat operations throughout South Vietnam including major joint operations during the TET Offensive , Hue City , Coronado II and Paddington . During his active military service , Colonel Ray was awarded many decorations , including two Silver Star s for gallantry , a Bronze Star Medal with Combat " V " , the Purple Heart , the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry and the Vietnamese Honor Medal . Colonel Ray resigned his active commission in 1969 and joined the Marine Corps Reserve , where he held a variety of command and staff positions , including command of combat and combat service support units in Louisville and Ft . Knox , Kentucky . In 1974 , he was certified as a Staff Judge Advocate , and graduated with honors from the Naval Justice School in Newport , Rhode Island , and attended many senior level military schools , the NATO Defense College in England and the National Defense University . He served as Deputy Director for Field Operations for the Division of History and Museums of the Marine Corps . Colonel Ray retired from the Marine Corps Reserve on June 30 , 1994 , and he is currently working on a history of the Vietnam War . In 1984 , Colonel Ray was appointed the first Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense ( Guard / Reserve ) in Washington , D . C . , which Pentagon appointment included responsibility for staffing and organizing a national management structure for exercising policy guidance and overall supervision of the 1 , 800 , 000 members of this nation ’ s National Guard & Reserve Forces . In 1985 , he received the National Eagle Award from the National Guard Association for exemplary public service while in the Pentagon . In 1990 , President Bush appointed Colonel Ray to the American Battle Monuments Commission , which is responsible for commemorating the services of American Armed Forces through the erection of memorials and maintaining cemeteries . In 1992 , Colonel Ray was appointed by the President to the Commission on the Assignment of Women in the Armed Forces . Colonel Ray founded and served as the Chairman of the Kentucky Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund , which privately raised more than one million dollars to build and dedicate a unique granite sundial as a Memorial to Vietnam veterans [ 2 ] in Frankfort , Kentucky . Colonel Ray was the lead counsel in the three cases brought in 2000 by the ACLU against Kentucky ’ s Pulaski and McCreary County Judges and Harlan County Schools seeking to suppress or censor the public posting of official and historical American political documents including : an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence ; the Preamble to the Kentucky Constitution ; America ’ s national motto “ In God We Trust ; ” a copy of the February 2 , 1983 , Congressional Record , which contains the text of the Ten Commandments ; a proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln ; a proclamation by President Ronald Reagan ; and the Mayflower Compact . In 2009 Colonel Ray joined with 96 Kentucky State Senators and 35 State Representatives , The Family Trust Foundation of Kentucky and The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky in two cases brought against Kentucky ’ s Homeland Security Law by the American Atheists , Inc . and the ACLU seeking to remove the name of “ Almighty God ” from Kentucky ’ s Homeland Security Law [ 3 ] [ 4 ] . The fight to secure the Lord ’ s name in Kentucky ’ s foundational law continues today . Colonel Ray was selected for Who ’ s Who in America and Who ’ s Who in America Law . He has appeared on multiple national television news broadcasts including : ABC World News Tonight , Larry King Live , Hannity and Combs , Fox and Friends , The Today Show , Fox News , Crossfire , and a number of national radio broadcasts . Today Colonel Ray writes and speaks on public and Constitutional issues of national interest such as America ' s Christian Heritage , “ Exemplary Conduct ” in the U . S . Armed Forces , the true relationship between Christianity and Politics , the Second Amendment , history of the Vietnam War and MIA / POWs , and a variety of defense and current policy subjects .