Marjorie "Marge" Gray
1927 - 2019
Obituary
Marjorie "Marge" Lucille (Gaines) Gray was born on
Aug. 1, 1927, in Newton, at her aunt Linda and uncle Jack Gaines' home. Her
parents were Joe and Ernestina (Tena) (Weber) Gaines. They lived on the
Watchorn Corner Oil lease in Summit Township, Marion County. Two brothers,
Ronald and Harvey, welcomed her to the family. Her Dad worked in the oil field
and their family milked cows and sold milk to the neighbors. She had many fond
memories of growing up in a lively, hard-working family on the farm. There was
always plenty of work and plenty of laughs. Later, Reeta, Mary Jane and Joseph
(J.D.) joined the family.
Marge went to the Summit Country School District #51 for
eight years (September 1933 to May 20, 1941) and then attended Peabody High
School, graduating May 18, 1945. She met Fordyce William (FW or Bud) Gray in
high school and they were married Nov. 27, 1949, in the Methodist Church in
Peabody. She then joined FW on the family farm. They celebrated 65 years of
marriage before he passed Dec. 12, 2014. They had three sons, Lewis (Loretta)
of Great Bend, Ernest (LouAnn) of Peabody and Douglas (Doris) of Hutchinson.
With declining health, she and Fordyce had to leave their farm home and move
into Peabody Care Center in August 2009. Marge passed away peacefully on Monday
(May 20, 2019) in Peabody.
Marge prized her relationship with parents, siblings,
children and grandchildren. She rarely missed an extended family get-together,
putting on many herself. She enjoyed reading, cooking and was well-known for
her skill as a cook. She always had large vegetable and flower gardens. She was
active in her church circle, home demonstration unit and bloodmobile drives, to
name a few.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her sister, Reeta,
and brother-in-law, Don Gillet; her brother, Ron, and sister-in-law, Maude; her
brothers, Harvey and Joe (J.D.); and her brother-in-law, Warren Olson.
She is survived by her sister, Mary Olson; and
sisters-in-law, Mary Beth Gaines and Gwen Gaines. Also surviving is her son,
Lewis (Loretta); and her grandchildren: Misty (Mark) Straub and their children,
Makenna and Makeila, of Great Bend; Landon Gray and his children, Katy and
Bryce, of Hutchinson; Crystal (Peter) Kautz and their children, Amelia and Eric,
of Lawrence. Also surviving is her son, Ernie (LouAnn); and grandchildren:
Russell and his children, Austin, Seth, Lucas and Robert, of Kansas City; Chris
(Stephanie) and their children, Tyler, Kylee and Cody, of Kansas City; Curt
(Kristin) and their children, Claire and Caleb, of Wichita; and Scott of Kansas
City. Also surviving, her son, Doug (Doris) and his children, Michael of
Washington D.C., Matthew of Hutchinson and Thomas of Hutchinson.
A memorial service is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday (May 24.
2019) at the Peabody Methodist Church in Peabody. The family will greet friends
prior to the service from 10 to 11 a.m. A private family inurnment will occur
at a later time.
A memorial has been established for the Peabody Methodist
Church and the Good Shepherd Hospice of Newton. Petersenfamilyfuneralhome.com.
