Raya Whalen was born in Mombasa, Kenya, and spent the first five years of her life in Africa until she and her family immigrated to the United States in 1990. She began training as a figure skater soon after, devoting the next 20 years to the sport in which she was a nationally ranked competitor, a Junior Olympics finalist, and an international professional skater.

After retiring as a professional athlete, Raya discovered her passion for civic participation. She founded the only young Republican women's organizations in the nation, the Young Republican Women of Cincinnati, Dayton, and Columbus. Their mission is to engage young, professional women in the political process and develop the next generation of republican leaders.

Raya has supported countless candidates and campaigns over the years. Her involvement in the Republican Party has been a consistent stream of dedicated work. Raya has served on the Montgomery County Republican Party Central Committee, the Ohio Federation of Republican Women board, and the National Federation of Republican Women board.

She was a 2016 recipient of the Dayton Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Award as well as the Montgomery County Republican Party’s Republican Woman of the Year award. Additionally, Raya was awarded the Tribute to Women Honoree by the Ohio Federation of Republican Women and the 40 Under 40 Rising Star Award by the Hamilton County Republican Party.

Raya has a BA in Communication from the University of Cincinnati and a Certification in Women in Leadership from Cornell University.

Raya lives in Oakwood with her husband, Mike, two adorable children, and two lovable dogs.