About

About W. Ray Johnson

W. Ray Johnson was a community activist and an advocate for social justice and equality. He worked for the city of Los Angeles, CA and the city of Fresno, CA as Deputy City Manager. He was also the Executive Director for the African American Historical & Cultural Museum of the San Joaquin Valley. Mr. Johnson believed that no one should make a decision based upon fear and that anyone can achieve greatness if given the opportunity.

"My husband, Ray, always said, don’t aspire to make a living. Aspire to make a difference. And he certainly did that in the lives of our children, family, and me."

Erma Johnson

The Mission

The W. Ray Johnson Foundation is a family charity that specializes in providing the financial means and assistance for students by creating scholarships, internships and special community-based projects at colleges and universities. The foundation is built upon the principle that no matter race, creed, sex, color, or circumstance, we are here to help students and the community achieve their education goals and have access to resources necessary to succeed.

The Logo

The logo for the foundation is a direct representation of our father’s family, a compass with a sun at its center. Ray is one of 10 siblings. Each petal on the 10-pointed sun represents him, his 6 brothers, and 3 sisters. Ray is represented by the yellow petal pointing north, his 3 sisters are represented by the 3 red petals, and his 6 brothers are the remaining orange petals. The sun is surrounded by the compass which has a corresponding letter for each sibling: Wilbur (Ray’s first name); Roland; Pauline; Odell; Frank; Jackie; Cleo; Reynold; Flozel; and Jerry. Board Members Stacee, Justin, and Rodney are Ray’s children. We are part of subsequent generations that span well over 200 relatives. Our father’s generation has always been a unifying example of values and a guiding light for the growing family. Just as how compasses are used to guide travelers, the compass in our logo means our family values instilled in us by our father and his siblings guide the work we do in the foundation.