Ed Okray was pioneering leader in Portage County Another pioneering leader has left Portage County. Edward J. Okray died Thursday, Dec. 13, at the age of 91. Okray was part of today's Okray Produce, which started out as Okray Family Farms in the Plover area. He was born in Stevens Point and continued to live here, but he was proud of the Plover area and worked to develop that area. He and his cousin, John Okray, were in the heart of the development of irrigation in the area, initially pumping water from creeks and rivers. When farmers began tapping the ground water with wells for irrigation, the Okrays followed suit, helping to turn the area south of Plover into "the Golden Sands." When Okray Family Farms settled in the Plover area, there was no village of Plover, only the town of Plover, and the heart of what was to become the village, was a tiny community along Highway 51. He became the president and chairman of the Bank of Plover when it was created. For recreation, he was an avid hunter and fisher, and especially enjoyed fly fishing for trout. He also enjoyed bowling and playing cribbage. He also was a thoroughbred horse owner for many years. Behind the scenes, he was generous in donations to fraternal, religious, local and civic organizations. A building at Treehaven, the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point natural resources field station near Tomahawk, is named Okray Living Center after a donation from Ed Okray and his wife, Lucille. He was a pioneer who left an imprint on Portage County. - Gene Kemmeter