Elden Earl Gray
Elden Earl Gray
Elden
Earl Gray, age 91, of Boise, Idaho, died peacefully at his home Dec 23,
surrounded and supported by his loving family after a courageous fight with
cancer. Elden was born June 1924 in Caldwell, Idaho to Elbert and Jessie Gray,
the third of five sons and grew up on Ustick Road east of Caldwell
.
Elden
went to Midway School, then graduated from Caldwell High in 1942. He farmed
after graduation in the Notus area, and worked at the Amalgamated Sugar
Factory.
In
February 1944, he volunteered for service in the US Army during World War II
.
His unit,
the 78th Division, D Company, served in the Battle of the Bulge and their
mortar fire was instrumental in the taking of the Rhine River bridge at
Ramagen. Then, once the war was over, the unit did police duty in Berlin. Elden
always said that there were two things you were concerned about during those
times; first, survival, and second, how things were at home.
Upon
returning home in March 1946 Elden went back to farming, with his father and
brothers. In 1948, he married Joyce McKeeth and they were married 38 years
before her death in 1987. They had two children,
Kimberly
and Chris. The family lived in the Wilder area, and then moved to the JMK Farms
on Highway 30 (Fairview) in Meridian in 1951. Elden farmed there for 9 years
before going into the real estate business with Idaho Properties. He sold many
homes, farms and ranches in the Boise valley over the years. His last sale was
of the JMK Farm to Center-Cal for the development of The Village at Meridian,
which facilitated the development of Julius M. Kleiner Memorial Park.
In
1988 Elden married Dorothy Fender of Caldwell and her daughters, Connie and
Shelly became a part of his family. Elden and Dorothy enjoyed nearly 24 years
of marriage before her passing in 2012.
Over
the course of his life, Elden was active in various community groups including:
Boise Boys Baseball, Capital High band boosters, local PTA's, Kiwanis, and
Lions Clubs, and he was a member of the Bronco Boosters and held season
football tickets for many years. He was a member of his beloved church for 62
years where he provided service, loyalty, and leadership to Parkview Christian
Church, formerly University Christian Church. Elden always said, however, that
the Lord had blessed him so very much, and that the church did way more for him
than he ever did for the church.
Besides
his family, one of the biggest joys of his life was the honor of being one of
the trustees for the development of Julius M. Kleiner Memorial Park where he
watched part of the land he had once worked become a beautiful 60 acre park
with fountains, playgrounds, band shell, and
Meridian
Senior Center. Elden was awarded the Mayor's Legacy Award in 2014 by Meridian
Mayor, Tammy DeWeerd.
He
is survived by his children, Kimberly Bruneel (Bill) of Stockton; CA, Elden
"Chris" Gray (Barbara) of Boise; Connie Andersen (Gary) of Wright,
WY; and Shelly Colson (Mike) of Grand Junction, CO; ten grandchildren; Shannon
Fletcher (Mike), of Fresno, CA; Benjamin Bruneel (Greta), of Goleta, CA; Brett
Bruneel (Briana) of Las Vegas, NV; Karli Warren (James) of Seattle, WA; Rob
Gray (Melissa), Shelly Gray, and Justin Gray all of Boise; Shawn Pfeiffer
(Jeff) of Rapid City, SD; Dane Dowen of Houston, TX; and Lucy Colson of Grand
Junction, CO
;
9 great grandchildren (with a 10th on the way), and one great
granddaughter
.
Brothers still living are: Aubrey Gray (Marjorie) of Eagle;
George Gray (Eloise) of Eugene, OR; and Lawerance Gray of Nampa. He was
preceded in death by his parents, his wives, and his brother Charles. He also
leaves behind his wonderful church family and many dear friends.
There
will be a viewing on Tuesday, January 5, 2016 from 2:00 - 7:00 p.m. at Alden-Waggoner
Funeral Chapel
.
A private family burial will be at Dry Creek Cemetery. A celebration
of life is planned for 1:00 p.m. Wed, January 6 at Parkview Christian Church,
201 W Ustick Road, Meridian. Memorials in his honor can be made to Parkview
Christian Church or Hope House in Marsing.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Elden Earl Gray, please visit our flower store.
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