Ray Inglish was born in a small town in Central Texas.  At the age of six, his family moved to Arizona and he attended elementary school there.  He attended Mesa High School where he was active in major sports, lettering in football and track.  During his high school years he discovered he had an interest and talent for writing and was encouraged to take journalism his senior year.  He became sports editor for the school paper and wrote several poems.  Some of these poems were published in Mesa and Phoenix newspapers, and at graduation from high school, in 1931, one of his poems appeared in the yearbook.

When the Mesa Writers Club was organized in 1934, Ray was invited to become a charter member.  He later served three years as president of this club.  During this time he moved to Boulder City, Nevada, where he managed a hardware store.  As the country was embroiled in World War II, Ray enlisted in the Navy Sea Bees and served over two years in the South Pacific.

After the war he went into the appliance business, and later became a life insurance agent.  After his retirement from life insurance, he continued his involvement in this field and currently serves on the Board of Directors of his company.

In 1972 he rejoined the Mesa Writers Club, and resumed his interest in writing.  In 1974 and 1975 he again served as president of the Writers Club.

Ray's love of poetry has prompted him to write poems on a wide range of subjects, from old Indian legends to the gas shortage of 1974.  Several of his poems on current events were printed in the local newspaper.