Jack Valley was born on February 14, 1924, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He enlisted in the U.S. Merchant Marine on November 3, 1942, and was also commissioned an Ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve on the same day. After completing radio operator training he served as a radio operator aboard the Liberty ship SS Julius Rosenwald from September 1943 to August 1944, and then aboard the tanker SS The Cottonwoods from August to October 1944. During this time, Ens Valley received an honorable discharge from the U.S. Naval Reserve on August 3, 1944. His next assignment was as Chief Radio Operator aboard the Liberty ship SS Francis Lewis from October 1944 to March 1945, followed by service as Chief Radio Operator aboard the Liberty ship SS Mary Cullom Kimbro from March to July 1945. His final assignment was as a radio operator aboard the Liberty ship SS Andrew A. Humphreys until he was given an honorable discharge from the U.S. Merchant Marine on August 15, 1945. After leaving the Merchant Marine, Jack founded Standard Paint & Varnish Company in New Orleans in 1946, and was elected President of Standard Paint & Varnish in 1948. He purchased Marine Paint & Varnish Company in 1959, and founded Standard Paint & Varnish in Honduras in 1960. Jack sold both Standard Paint & Varnish and Marine Paint & Varnish to Avondale Shipyards in New Orleans in 1967, and was elected Vice President of Avondale Shipyards in 1969. Later in 1969, Jack also founded Standard Paint & Varnish in Aberdeen, Scotland, and in Madrid, Spain. He was also founder and Vice President of Butch Oustalet Ford in Gulfport, Mississippi. Jack Valley died on August 7, 2013, and was buried at Metairie Cemetery in New Orleans.