Ray Hertel grew up Catholic in Evansville, Indiana. There he received a Bachelors of Science in Biology from the University of Evansville. After acquiring his teaching license, he taught high school biology and chemistry for four years at Reitz Memorial High School. It was during this time that he discovered the RCIA and took his first tentative steps into ministry. Soon, Ray taught middle school science and health, and physics at Shawe Memorial in Madison, Indiana. After that, Ray pursued a different course of education in Houston, and earned a Masters of Pastoral Studies at St. Thomas University. He worked at Sacred Heart in Galveston as the Director of Religious Education for a year before Hurricane Ike closed all of the Galveston parishes. After Ike he became the Director of Adult Education at the newly-formed and Island-wide Holy Family Parish, where he served for seven years.