Ray Archer

Ray graduated from Frederick College in 1964 and earned his Master’s from Longwood College in 1973. A teacher and a coach for 32 years, he enjoyed teaching both History and Spanish, and coached 5 sports. Prior to coming to Appomattox, he taught and coached at Amherst High School, where he started the track program. At Caroline High School, he served as head coach for football, baseball, track, and basketball. Later, he went on to be the head football and track coach at William Campbell High School. He went on to spend the next 20 years of his career here at Appomattox High School. While at Appomattox, Ray coached men’s basketball for 3 years, was an assistant football coach for 8 years, and he was head volleyball coach for 10 years. He was the head outdoor girls track coach for 19 years. He recalls that for 16 years, way “back in the day” -- he had to manually push a chalk line marker around what used to be a dirt track, 7 times!-- just to create each of the runner lanes for every home meet. He was thrilled to see his team enjoy this state-of-the-art rubberized track during his last 3 years of coaching! The girl’s track team represented Appomattox in Regional and State competitions every season and were the Seminole District Champions in both 1995 and 1996. Throughout his career, he coached numerous all-district and all-region athletes. Coach Archer was named The Seminole District Girl’s Track Coach of the Year twice, in 1995 and again in 1996. He is thankful to God for the opportunity to have taught and coached so many young people over the years. Ray retired from Appomattox in 1996, became an ordained minister, and has served as a full-time pastor for the last 23 years. He and Jerrie reside in Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

• Hall of Fame (2021)

Inducted in 2021