I did a little searching and found this and it made me proud to be from our little town! Birth: 1928 Death: 1976 Gail Grays funeral was one of the largest in the memory of Windsor, Missouri. Downtown businesses closed. Farmers came into town from their fields. Policemen served as pallbearers. Yet, Gray was not a prominent merchant or a distinguished official. Gray had Downs syndrome. He had been left an orphan in 1958 at the age of 30. Windsor residents pitched in to help him with places to stay and odd jobs to help him with money. He lived in various homes for five years. Then he moved into a nursing home where he lived until it closed in October 1976. Whenever an elderly resident of that nursing home died, Gray would always be the first to arrive at the funeral home. He would stand by the coffin with the minister, take off his hat, look in, step back, and give a tearful salute. He would always arrive early, and leave before the funeral service began. He had a way of pulling his hunched frame erect, putting his feet together, and saluting. He did it at funerals, whenever the flag went by in a parade, or when he saw the president on television. On a November day in 1976, he was sweeping the sidewalk in front of a store when he collapsed and died of a heart attack. He was 48. What made Gail Gray such an honored member of his community? Simply the fact that he honored others—honored them regardless of their age, their status, or their ability to do anything for him. Honored them in life and in death. Like Jesus, he wasnt afraid to draw attention to himself as he honored and loved others. At his funeral, the minister, holding back tears, quoted Matthew 25:40: Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then he approached the coffin as he had done so many times with Gray at his side at the funeral home. He touched the coffin, lookin in, stepped back, paused … and saluted. (Source - James Aldridge. Proclaim, 1980 #2, p. 34) ***This page is a work in progress. I will be writing an original bio when I finish researching Gail. I added the information above only as temporary biography.*** Burial: Laurel Oak Cemetery Windsor Henry County Missouri, USA Plot: Lot:0650 Gr:A
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 17:31:04 +0000
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