Saturday, December 28, 2024

Lusophone World Studies – Rhode Island College

The Institute for Portuguese and Lusophone World Studies is pleased to invite you to My Buffalo Nickel And Other Stories From a Portuguese American Life.The life and writings of Joseph George Ray as told by Marie Ray Fraley

Monday, January 29, 2024

My Buffalo Nickel And Other Stories From a Portuguese American Life.The life and writings of Joseph George Ray as told by Marie Ray Fraley

6:00-7:30 pm (US/EST)

Gaige Hall 200 (#24 on the campus map)

Rhode Island College

Parking Lot J

Free and open to the community

Light refreshments

Sales proceeds at this event will be donated by the author toward the Portuguese American Archives at Rhode Island College

About the author

Marie R. Fraley was the Director (2013-2018) of the Institute for Portuguese and Lusophone World Studies where she previously held positions of Interim Director (2009), Associate Director (2007) and Policy Consultant (2006). Her interests include non-profit governance, Azorean genealogy and the political participation of Luso-Americans in Rhode Island. She earned a professional certificate in Non-Profit Studies from the Feinstein Institute for Philanthropic Studies at Rhode Island College and is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFT). She has been recognized as a Partner in Philanthropy by the AFT and received the RIC Alumni Service Award for her fundraising efforts on behalf of the Portuguese Studies Endowment Fund and for her volunteer work toward the establishment of the Institute in 2006. She is Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of the Portuguese American Leadership Council of the United States (PALCUS) and a past president of the celebrations of the Day of Portugal in Rhode Island.

In her previous career, she was a Speech-Language Pathologist in Rhode Island public schools for over 20 years working with students with learning and communication disorders. Mrs. Fraley earned B.A. and M.S. degrees in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Rhode Island and studied Linguistics at the graduate level at Brown University.

About the Book

Daughter’s Debut Book Honors the Life and Writings of Her Father

Jan-Carol Publishing, Inc., of Blountville, Tennessee, is proud to announce the nationwide release of My Buffalo Nickel and Other Stories From a Portuguese American Life: The Life and Writings of Joseph George Ray as told by Marie Ray Fraley.

The granddaughter of immigrants from the Azores, Marie Ray Fraley was raised in the Portuguese parish of a Rhode Island mill town. In her retirement from a career as a speech-language pathologist, she embarked on a research journey to the island of São Miguel to uncover the roots of her family tree. This ultimately led to a second career in the advocacy of the Portuguese culture at local, national, and international levels.

My Buffalo Nickel follows the life and works of the son of Azorean immigrants, Joseph George Ray, during the Great Depression, World War II, the lacemaking industry, and his struggle with Parkinson’s Disease. Be inspired by his humor, resilience, and grit as one of the many stalwarts of The Greatest Generation viewed through his memoirs, poetry, sketches, and the eyes of his loving daughter, Marie Ray Fraley.

My Buffalo Nickel is available on Amazon, Barnes&Noble.com, or directly through JCP.  Paperback books will be available for sale at this book launch at Rhode Island College, and the sales proceeds will be donated by the author toward the Portuguese American Archives at Rhode Island College.