Robert Gray

Funeral services for Robert Gray were held at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, March 8, 2024, at Grace United Methodist Church in Piedmont, SD. Graveside services were held on Saturday, at Union Cemetery, near Bijou Hills, by Academy, SD. Kirk Funeral Home of Rapid City, SD, was in charge of arrangements. Robert was born in Chamberlain, SD on July 29, 1934 to Dale Rex Gray and Delma Madsen, the oldest of four children. Early on in life he found a love for cars. After graduating from Gregory High School in 1952, he attended Springfield College to study mechanical business management and repair. After a year, he came home to help on the family farm and worked at Newsam’s Chevrolet Garage in Gregory.

It was while he was in college that he met Ellen Jean Riha. They were united in marriage in August of 1955. To this union, two daughters were born. Jolene and Laurie were raised in Fairfax and Gregory. He worked at the SD Highway Department in Gregory County and then in 1962, he began employment with Farmer’s Union Oil Co. in Fairfax, SD. He was a petroleum salesman, delivery man, worked in the shop and later became manager.

A favorite family pastime was camping in a large army tent. He later bought an old school bus and turned it into a camper. They went on numerous trips to the Missouri River, the Black Hills, and even a trip to Oregon in that old blue and white bus. In 1972, a new adventure presented itself. He and the family spent the next two summers working at Legion Lake Resort in the Black Hills of SD. He bought, fixed up and painted red an old Willy Jeep. Days off at the resort were spent on the winding roads of the Black Hills in the Jeep. In 1974 he was hired at the Rosebud Farmer’s Union in Gregory, SD, and moved the family there.

One day Robert came home with a Harley Davidson motorcycle. He and Jean helped start the Wandering Wheels Motorcycle Club and those adventures took them to the Sturgis Rally many times and to Canada once. In 1983, he left Gregory and moved to Gillette, WY to work at Cenex. In May of 1986 that he and Jean divorced.

In 1999, he moved to Piedmont, SD, and worked various jobs including ones at Campbell Supply in Sturgis, Runnings in Rapid City, and at a tourist information center in Tilford. He met Betty Ober and they were married in 2000. They enjoyed twenty years together until their health took them to different ends of the state. After he retired, his hobby became searching out old vehicles, tinkering on them for awhile, selling them and moving onto the next one. You could mostly find him in his workshop pondering and dreaming on a little project or working on a mower from his “mower room” which contained a mountain of old mowers.

No matter where he lived, he was always active in organizations in his community, included the Gregory Commercial Club, Piedmont Lion’s Club, Piedmont Park Board, and Mayor of Fairfax. He was a member of the Congregational Church in Fairfax, the Congregational Church in Gregory, and Grace United Methodist Church in Piedmont.

Robert (Bob) Dale Gray, 89 years, passed away on March 4, 2024 at Avantarra Arrowhead in Rapid City, SD.

He is survived by daughters Jolene (Rick) Hanson of Piedmont, SD and Laurie (Mike) Holloway of Rapid City, SD; grandchildren Jimmy Holloway (Sarah) of Parkston, SD, Jeremy (Ashley) Hanson of Hartford, SD, Tina (Tom) Brouwers of Rapid City, SD, Meagan (Justin) Schlecht of Dickinson, ND, and Amanda Holloway of Rapid City, SD; seven greatgrandchildren; sister Virginia Klein of Salem, OR; brother- in-law Lawrence Neuharth of Butte, NE; and several nephews and a niece.

He was preceded in death by his parents; and two sisters Della Neuharth and Debby Gray.