The Brothers Jay

As this is Asian Pacific Heritage month, I want to acknowledge 2 people who were born, raised and educated in my native city of Columbus, Ohio to Chinese parents. They are John C Jay, and his younger brother, Ben. Their parents, Gim and Jan Jay, operated and ran Crestview Market in the 1960's until their retirement in the 1980's. Crestview Market was a primary supplier to most of the Chinese restaurants in greater Columbus, including my family's, Jong Mea.

In Ben's student days at Ohio State, my family saw him often, as he made many deliveries to Jong Mea. When he wasn't working or in school, he was involved in numerous sporting activities, which is why his current occupation comes as no surprise to anyone who knew him growing up.

After Ben received his bachelor's degree in accounting at Ohio State in 1981, he began his varied and very successful athletic administration career. In summary:

• General Manager, Redwood Pioneers, a minor league baseball affiliate for the California Angels. 
• Director of Operations, Cleveland Indians. 
• Master's Degree, athletics administration, The Ohio State University. 
• Assistant Athletics Director for Business and Finance, Fairfield (Connecticut) University. 
• Associate Commissioner for Business and Finance, PAC-10 Conference. 
• Senior Associate Athletics Director for Finance and Operations, The Ohio State University, and as of January, 2013,
• Athletic Director, University of Hawai'i, Manoa

Below is a YouTube video interview with Ben after his appointment as the new Athletic Director at the University of Hawai'i.

Ben's older brother, John C Jay, earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Ohio State in 1971. John's career began in New York at Bloomingdale's in the menswear and home furnishings department. In his 12 years at Bloomingdale's, he moved up the ranks to become Executive Vice President, Director of Creative and Marketing Services.

In 1993, John moved to Wieden+Kennedy in Portland, Oregon. As partner and global executive creative director for W+K, he led campaigns for Nike, Coca-Cola and Microsoft. He also established satellite offices in Tokyo, Shanghai and Delhi. In honor of his parents and school roots, he established the Gim and Jan Jay Scholarship Fund at Ohio State to provide financial assistance for students of Asian descent who seek careers in visual or performing arts and design.

As of January 2013, W+K appointed John as lead for their new unit, W+K Garage. From Kiran Aditham's article listed in the Agency Spy section of Media Bistro, the creation of Garage "will serve as a multidisciplinary creative agency for the connected age, focused on the concepting, creating and investing in innovative experiences, content and technology."

I've included a video interview of John from November 2011:



From this Asian-American, Columbus native and Ohio State alum, way to go. You homeboys make us proud.