AN AMERICAN HERO NEEDS YOUR HELP!

If you saw the movie “Top Gun” and marveled at what the F-14 could do and wondered “why”, the answer is because it had the first microprocessor chip in the world invented for it by Ray Holt.

Retired Commander David Baranek, a former F-14 Radar Intercept Officer (RIO, like Goose) and Topgun instructor, and author of three books on the F-14, had this to say about how Ray’s chip was critical to the F-14 and America’s naval air superiority:

“The F-14 Tomcat was an advanced design for its time, and the Navy set ambitious performance goals. The best way to meet the goals was to use a ‘swing wing,’ and for maximum capability it had to be fully automatic. Ray Holt led the design team that created a microprocessor that performed better than the electromechanical systems used before. Experts later judged this to be the first microprocessor, an impressive achievement.”

In his forward to Ray Holt’s 2006 book, “The Accidental Engineer” Commander (Ret.) H.R. (Bart) Everett, former Technical Director for Robotics at the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific in San Diego, CA had this to say about the value of Ray’s first chip to America’s Military Robotics Programs.

He gives credit to Ray’s chip being instrumental in his creation of the ROBART I, the World’s first autonomous security robot, and the first robot to incorporate speech synthesis He went on to say, “I put particular emphasis on the perception and autonomy technology developed under the ROBART series, and its impressive legacy of literally hundreds of follow-on projects we subsequently produced for the Department of Defense customers. Without Ray Holt and the SYM-1 (Ray’s chip), there likely would have been no ROBART I and ROBART II, whereupon I would have never been designated as Special Assistant for Robotics to the Commander, Naval Sea Systems Command, and then spent 34 more years working in the field of unmanned systems”

One would think Ray must have been paid well for his contribution to America’s military superiority. He received his salary, but Ray wasn’t allowed to patent or copyright the chip and was told he could not even speak about the chip because it was Top Secret and they didn’t want our adversaries to develop one. The chip was developed in 1970, and it wasn’t until 1998 that the government declassified the chip so Ray could receive the recognition he deserved for his contribution. But he never received any financial compensation.

Ray Holt has spent his life building others up. For the past 14 years, he’s lived in rural Mississippi, dedicating his time and talent to inspiring the next generation of engineers, scientists, and innovators. Through his non-profit, Mississippi Robotics, Ray has taught more than 1,000 students from 2nd to 12th grade, coached winning robotics teams, and opened doors for rural and underserved youth to dream bigger than they ever thought possible.

Ray is not only an educator, but also a pioneer in engineering. He helped design

for the U.S. Navy and has been recognized globally for his contributions. But if

you ask Ray what he’s most proud of, it’s not the awards or patents, it’s the kids whose lives have been changed because someone believed in them.

Today, Ray urgently needs our help:

Ray is battling pyoderma gangrenosum, a rare and extremely painful condition that has caused a severe wound to his leg. He was accepted for treatment at the Mayo Clinic. After being examined by a variety of experts in the field of healing wounds, Ray was told they think they can heal his wound and save his leg from being amputated. This will take approximately three months.

Ray’s treatment will be done as an “outpatient”. During these three months, Ray will have to stay in a recovery facility and commute by Uber to and from the Clinic three times a week. In addition, he will need to pay for his meals, medicines and his basic needs, as well as his trip home. He estimates needing approximately $30,000 for this to happen and save his leg.

Ray has spent his life serving his country and his community. Now, it’s time for his country, his friends, and the communities he has served to rally around him. Your gift will go directly toward his housing, caregiver support, travel, medicines, and basic needs as he prepares for and undergoes specialized treatment.

Please help us give Ray the comfort, dignity, and hope he needs during this fight.

No amount is too small. Every act of kindness matters.

From building microprocessors to building futures, Ray has given everything to others. Let’s give Ray back the love and support he has given others his whole life.

There is a small group of us working on submitting Ray for the “Presidential Medal of Freedom” for his contribution to our Military and Country. If you wish to be kept up to date on our progress, please let me know.