Born in Norfolk, VA, Ray Parrack’s journey began when his family moved to Baltimore where he received much of his early education including attending Baltimore Polytechnic Institute and Johns Hopkins University where he pursued a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. While at JHU, he worked at Westinghouse as part of Westinghouse’s work-study program. After earning his bachelor’s degree, he earned a master’s degree from the University of Colorado under a National Science Foundation Fellowship.

While in Colorado, Parrack’s life took an unexpected turn. After interviewing with several private companies, he spoke to a CIA recruiter and was intrigued. He was initially most interested in the free trip to Washington, D.C., where he would interview, because he could visit his fiancé who lived in the area.

After being hired, Parrack initially provided technical support for the CIA’s overseas operations from 1968 to 1977 in the area of electronics. Seeking a foreign assignment, Parrack ventured into numerous countries on temporary duty assignments and received cross-disciplinary training in the areas of secret writing, ultra-small cameras, disguise, and other fields to become a singleton technical officer in a CIA station.

In a significant chapter of his career, Parrack, accompanied by his family, was posted in Moscow from 1977 to 1979 after training in the Russian language. Prior to going to Moscow, his wife, Francie, received Russian language training and darkroom training to process and print 35mm film. Just after their arrival in Moscow, a fire in the embassy ruined the darkroom, so Francie never utilized that training. Rather, she worked part-time as the bookkeeper in the embassy’s commissary. Reflecting on his tour in Russia, Parrack stated, “It was very successful,” leaving details to the imagination.

In the early 1980’s, Parrack found his family and himself in Southern Europe, where he managed a unit of technical officers. Returning to the Washington, D.C. area for the remaining years of his career until he retired in 1998, he served as a Senior Manager in the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology.

From 1998 until 2016, Parrack worked for a technical consulting firm in Northern Virginia. After he retired from that company, CIA brought him back as a volunteer to provide tours of CIA’s Museum.

After Francie’s passing in 2021, Parrack moved to Lutheran Village at Miller’s Grant in June 2023 to be close to his daughters Janice and Christy.

Parrack remains active, pursuing his interests in photography and volunteering. He is a docent for the CIA Museum in Langley, VA, is active in several CIA retiree organizations, and volunteers for Fidos for Freedom.

As a new resident of LVMG, Parrack brings with him a wealth of experiences and a spirit of adventure that inspires those around him. Like many other LVMG residents, Parrack’s story is fascinating.

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