Post Office Renamed to Honor Ray Charles

08/25/2005 9:13 AM, AP


The warm voice of the late singer Ray Charles filled the neighborhood near his recording studio Wednesday during a ceremony christening a post office in his name.

As Charles' rendition of "America the Beautiful" rang out over speakers, family, friends and associates watched as workers unveiled the new Ray Charles Station post office sign.

"My hopes are that the naming of this post office facility is only the first of many tributes for a man who started from nowhere to end up a national treasure and global phenomenon," said Rep. Diane Watson (news, bio, voting record), D-Los Angeles, who sponsored the federal bill to rename the post office.

President Bush signed the bill into law last month.

Charles died in June 2004 of acute liver disease at age 73. His death ended a 58-year career in which he combined rock 'n' roll with gospel and soul to create a new style for hits such as "What'd I Say," "Hit the Road Jack," "Georgia on My Mind" and "I Can't Stop Loving You." Charles, whose nickname was "The Genius," won 12 Grammy Awards over his career, including one for his last album "Genius Loves Company."

Born Ray Charles Robinson, he lost his eyesight at age 7, was an orphan at 15 and struggled for nearly 20 years with an addiction to heroin. He quit the drug cold turkey in 1965 after an arrest at a Boston airport.

His life story was chronicled in the 2004 film "Ray," which earned a best actor Oscar for actor Jamie Foxx.

The renaming of the post office touched all of Charles' family, said his son, Rev. Robert Robinson.

"We miss him so much. So we appreciate every little piece that people do to keep his memory there," Robinson said. "Now we have something we can always see with his name on it and the world can share."

The Ray Charles Station is located just blocks away from the recording studio and business office where Charles produced "Georgia on My Mind" and his final album.

His longtime manager, Joe Adams, told nearly 200 people at the renaming ceremony that he remembered when there was a bar instead of a post office at the corner. He joked that Charles used to sort mail at the facility, which explained why some letters took six or seven years to get delivered.

Adams also presented a letter from comedian Bill Cosby to former President Bill Clinton and asked that it be the first mailed from the newly renamed post office.

Letter carrier Charles Scott said he was proud to see the building named after Charles.

"He set the standards and we have to live up to his name," said Scott, 50. "Ray Charles is a legend. We'll have to strive for perfection to live up to those standards."