Longtime Mexico resident and business owner Ron Ray runs unopposed for a seat on the city council after his only opponent, incumbent Chris Williams, dropped out of the race in January.

Ron Ray will be on the ballot in the general municipal election in Mexico April 8.

“Go, Mexico!” said Ron. “There are a lot of hard-working folks here in town.”

Ron grew up in Columbia, where he attended Rock Bridge High School. His parents, Henry and Lavon, owned multiple Dairy Queens, including the one here in town, so Ron spent quite a bit of his time in Mexico.

Ron said his goals as a city council member are to maintain a positive outlook, assist in making Mexico a great place to live, enhance the quality of life, keep Mexico’s traditions alive and look for economic advancement.

“Being in Mexico for 35 years, I have interacted with the city on occasion, and it has always been good, so I want to keep that going,” said Ron.

In high school, Ron started his own business called “Sound Station,” which he maintained through college.

“It was an audio business, mainly car audio, and I would install stereos on the weekends,” said Ron.

His father Henry had a plethora of businesses in addition to the Dairy Queens, inspiring Ron to follow in his footsteps. After college, Ron sold his business and got into the heating and air conditioning appliance industry.

“I sold part of that off and ended up in the furniture business,” said Ron, who bought a furniture store from his father, which he eventually turned into Slumberland Furniture of Mexico in 2002.

“I have been here for 35 years or so, and it’s home,” he said.

Ron’s wife Lori is a Mexico native who grew up in town. According to Ron, Lori is very involved in the community, as is he.

“I have been the president of the Optimist Club and a past director of the youth baseball and softball program,” said Ron.

In addition to still helping out at the ballpark when he can, Ron is on the elder board at First Presbyterian Church, serving on the property committee and a board member of the Children’s Therapy and Early Education School.

Ron has been retired for a couple of years after his son Logan joined the family business and officially assumed full ownership of Slumberland Furniture in Mexico.

It was primarily civic duty that drew Ron to running for a city council member position.

“I am just looking to bring a positive perspective into the city council, not that there isn’t one already,” said Ron.

Ron has never held a public office before, but has attended city council meetings and thinks that his experience in leadership roles has prepared him for this responsibility.

“In many organizations that you are involved in, you kind of get adjusted for how administration works, especially in business because you do wear a lot of hats,” said Ron.

While there are no specific areas Ron plans to tackle during his term, one thing he would like to focus on is Mexico’s appearance.

“In general, I would like to bring up the quality of the look in Mexico to our visitors,” said Ron.