Dwight 'Bo' Ramsay, prominent Lafayette businessman and philanthropist, dies at 94
Dwight "Bo" Ramsay, a prominent Lafayette oil and gas businessman and philanthropist, has died.
The 94-year-old's family was by his side when he died Thursday night
Ramsay served as a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army's Airbourne Division. He served during the occupation of Japan at the end of World War II and was a task commander during the Korean War, where he was wounded defending Heartbreak Ridge in 1952.
He was awarded a Purple Heart.
In between tours, Ramsay earned a degree in geology from the University of Arkansas, according to Daily Advertiser archives.
Following his enlistment, Ramsay entered the oil business in 1953 and led several national oil and gas companies to successful discoveries throughout the west and southwest before relocating in 1962 to Lafayette to head Alco Oil and Gas Corp. He was appointed president of Alco in 1969.
Ramsay, who is originally from Arkansas, said he fell in love with the Lafayette community because of its people, culture and food and because it was a place he could be productive, according to Daily Advertiser archives.
Ramsay formed Aries Marine Corporation in 1981 to provide workboat services to offshore drilling rigs and production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. The company now serves both the petroleum and renewable energy industries.
In 2011, he was honored as the LAGCOE "Looey," a symbol of the working oil man.
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Ramsay also was the president of Ramsay Corp. and a co-owner of Farm d'Allie Golf Club.
Ramsay's "true love" was civic giving, his family wrote in his obituary. Because of his philanthropy, he was awarded the Lafayette Civic Cup in 2012 and was named the Philanthropist of the Year by the Planned Giving Council of Acadiana in 2007.
"When I see a need, I just have a knee-jerk reaction to fix it," Ramsay told the Daily Advertiser in 2012. "I guess that's just the way I am."
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His contributions included helping create the Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic and supporting St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, Episcopal School of Acadiana, Henderson State College, University of Arkansas, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, the Acadiana Symphony and Bridge Ministries.
When a gunman started shooting during a showing at the Grand 16 cinema complex on Johnston Street, Ramsay recognized the gunfire, faced the gunman and started toward him, protecting his wife Jerry Ramsay.
Ramsay was shot seven times. He told the Daily Advertiser the gunman "finished his magazine into me."
"Bo was a great guy," said Gary McGoffin, who sits on the Civic Cup board. "He was truly both a gentleman and a gentle man. He was always so gracious."
"He helped people all the time. Sometimes it was something big and you heard about it. Oftentimes, you didn't," he added.
Ramsay is survived by his wife and two children.
Funeral arrangements are pending and being handled by Fountain Memorial. Find more details at www.fountainmemorialfuneralhome.com.
Contact Ashley White at adwhite@theadvertiser.com or on Twitter @AshleyyDi.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Prominent Lafayette oil businessman, philanthropist 'Bo' Ramsay dies
