William Ralph Meador was a true exemplar of the expression "a real character." He was well-educated, well-read and well-spoken, and he expected others to be the same. His dry sense of humor, coupled with a strong dose of irony infused his stories and letters.
An Oklahoma City native, Ralph graduated from Central High School and went on to attend Rice University to study chemistry. In 1951, he earned a bachelor's degree, and later a PhD, before beginning his chemistry career in the petroleum products division of Conoco in Ponca City. In 1968, he moved to Columbus, Ohio, where he worked as an editor and document analyst for the Chemical Abstracts Service until his retirement 1994.
Ralph filled his time with friends, family, music and gardening. He was a prolific correspondent and retained connections to Oklahoma City throughout his life. In 1996, Ralph established the Lillian Frances Watts Meador Fund at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation in memory of his mother, who was an Oklahoma City resident until her death in 1992. Inspired by the Margaret Annis Boys Trust, Ralph directed the fund to support public beautification projects, including the planting of hyacinth bulbs in Oklahoma City. Following his death in 2017, a gift from his estate expanded his support to include both beautification and music.