Community Corner
Liam Rattray: The 'Renaissance Man'
Family and friends remember the former Lakeside High School graduate who died on Memorial Day after he was struck by a drunk driver.
Liam Rattray built the motorcycle he was riding when a drunk driver hit him in Little Five Points on Memorial Day, killing him. He built the fully functional kitchen in his eco-friendly home, a converted school bus parked in front of the Big House, a performance space on Ponce de Leon Avenue. He planted the organic garden in front of that home, which provided him with much of his produce.
“He was kind of this Renaissance man,” said Ian Rattray, Liam’s father. “He was a smart guy. But also at the same time he understood the power of physical labor.”
Rattray graduated from Georgia Tech summa cum laude barely one month before the accident. He was the top research student in the university's Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts and the top student in Tech’s public policy school. The alumnus was preparing to pursue a career in environmental advocacy.
“He was non-stop on the go because there was so much he felt he needed to do out there,” said Liam’s mother, Linda Rattray.
“And it’s kind of weird because when we’ve been talking about it over the past couple days it sounds like it’s a Miss Universe competition,” Ian Rattray said. “You know, ‘I want to change the world’ – stuff they always say at the end of those competitions. But with Liam it was true. I mean, he actually believed in it, and he was trying to do that.”
Rattray was scheduled to leave May 31 at 5am for the Factor e Farm in Missouri to repair tractors and build a roof – his idea of a post-college celebratory vacation. The independent farm focuses on sustainable agricultural practices.
“Liam was so excited about that. That’s exactly what he wanted to do,” said Catherine Armbruster, his girlfriend of one and a half years.
His family received “at least 100 emails” from well-wishers in the days following his death, many of whom they did not even know, his father said. Two area residents who said their lives were changed by Rattray were the ones who raised him.
“He changed his parents,” said Linda Rattray. “He had a big impact on us. He opened my eyes to a lot of environmental issues.”
Another was Rashid Nuri, founder of local organic farm Truly Living Well.
“Liam was quite passionate,” Nuri said. “He can serve as an inspiration to so many, especially young people.”
Rattray worked for Truly Living Well and was planning to pay the bills after college by splitting his time between the organic farm and the Georgia Tech Research Institute. The two organizations were on the verge of jointly receiving a $50,000 Ford Foundation grant to pursue a sustainability project. Rattray was the driving force behind the grant proposal, Armbruster said.
“It was Liam. Forty-eight hours staring at a computer screen,” she said.
According to childhood friend Isidore Bethel, Rattray’s all-consuming focus was nothing new. From a young age “he could be interested in anything” and maintain a sustained interest, Bethel said. One such interest was the arts. Rattray was a trumpet player, poet and photographer.
His ska band, The Dog’s Bollocks, played at several prominent local venues, including the The Masquerade in Atlanta. Like his other pursuits, Rattray’s music was driven by passion, not profit.
“When they started the band I was like: ‘Hey man, great. Get a contract. Get going,’” said Ian Rattray. “Purely about fun. He had no interest in that.”
Rattray’s mother pointed out that Liam’s wide-ranging list of passions, ambitions and goals was still growing before it was prematurely cut off last Monday night.
“He was just so excited to get started on all these plans he had,” she said.