Jeffrey G Gray, 61, of Lebanon, IL, passed from this earth Saturday July 21, 2018. He was born October 18, 1956, in Belleville, IL.

Jeff was the oldest of 3 children born to Gene Gray and Lila “Rusty” (Ganz) Gray. David is the middle child and Gina, 12 years younger than Jeff, a delightful afterthought.

Jeff grew up in Lebanon. His dad was an HVAC contractor who built and/or renovated a number of homes for his family. It was during the course of helping Gene with a major reno that Jeff became particularly interested in the process. This greatly influenced his decision making with regard to a career.

Growing up, Jeff played multiple sports, particularly baseball and basketball. He exhibited a talent for art, and his folks sent him for lessons. He also showed signs of an exceptional mind.

Following graduation from high school, Jeff went to SIU-Carbondale and graduated from a 2-year technical program in architectural drafting. He immediately started work at a small architectural firm in Belleville. (He graduated on a Friday and started work the following Monday.)

It was around this time that Jeff began dating Chris Baer, who had been a year behind him in high school. Jeff and Chris soon became an item, and the two were married August 18, 1979.

During the early years of their marriage, both Jeff and Chris finished their educational endeavors. Chris completed nursing school at SIU-Edwardsville, and Jeff finished his Bachelor’s degree at Washington University. He also passed the examinations required to obtain his licensure as a Registered Architect.

Jeff worked for a number of years at WHGK Architects in Belleville, where he made several life-long friends. He then worked at Dave Loyet Architecture in Highland for a few years, following which he began work at Southwestern Bell Telephone in downtown St. Louis. Jeff continued working there for 35 years, through their transition to ATT. He developed friendships that lasted beyond the end of his work days, and into the years of his illness. His ATT friends were some of his closest and most loyal, maintaining a close relationship with Chris well beyond the time that Jeff remembered them or anyone.

Jeff and Chris had two daughters: Nicole Esther in 1986 and Lindsey Erin in 1989. His daughters brought him tremendous happiness and pride, though in typical fashion he didn’t particularly make that known to anyone but Chris.

Jeff was a dedicated runner from his teen years until his illness extinguished that interest. Although he was the first to acknowledge that his physique wasn’t particularly suited to running, he continued that pursuit into his 50’s. Many people in town became used to seeing him running the streets. Both of his daughters have continued his love/hate relationship with running. Although Lindsey began running while Jeff was still aware, it is unfortunate that he was already ill when Nikki became interested. He was never able to see both his daughters follow in his footsteps, literally!

Jeff was an avid weight-lifter, another endeavor which he pursued his entire adult life. His body was much more suited to weight lifting than running. He had a very broad chest and shoulders, and was extremely strong.

In addition to pushing his body to it’s limits, Jeff was also quite the intellectual. He was very well read on a broad variety of topics, and his memory was astounding. He could summon facts from his brain that he had learned in childhood! He was the ideal trivia night teammate!

As an Architect, one of Jeff’s dreams was to design and build his family’s home. He completed that dream, with the help of his father, in 1994. The Grays raised their family in that home on McKendree Park Road in Lebanon.

Another of Jeff’s interests was travel. He and Chris took their growing daughters on many wonderful vacations. They visited numerous cities, states, National Parks, Recreational Areas, and theme parks, but all agreed the trip to Yosemite was among their very favorite.

As the girls got older, Jeff and Chris took several trips on their own. Jeff had always wanted to visit Australia, and on a lark, the two made the trip. It was a 3 week adventure, during which they petted Kangaroos, held Koalas, and peered warily at Tasmanian Devils. It really was the trip of a lifetime, and fortunately they took it before Jeff became ill with the disease which stole his identity, and ultimately, his life.

Jeff had always hoped to retire early and spend the later years of his life traveling the world with Chris. Though he did retire early, FrontoTemporal Dementia cut short his dreams.

Jeff Gray was a brother, son, husband, dad, and friend who was loved and respected. He believed in loyalty, honesty, and dependability. If he agreed to help a friend, he’d be there to help. A remarkable man; a remarkable life.

Jeff was preceded in death by his parents Gene and Lila, his parents-in-law, Orville and Mabel Baer, his sister-in-law, Cheryl Gray, and two nephews, Nathan Taylor and Aaron Baer.

In addition to Chris, he is survived by his children Nicole (Nick) Wilson and Lindsey (Branden) Beers, granddaughter Harper Witty, brother David, and sister Gina (Darin) Lee. He is also survived by sisters and brothers-in-law Beth (Mike) Phillips, Roger (Barb) Baer, and Paul (Denise) Baer, and by numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.

In lieu of flowers, please send memorials to the Association for FrontoTemporal Degeneration or the Lebanon Education Foundation.

A Celebration of Jeff’s life, open to all, will be held Saturday, July 28, 2018, 1:00-5:00, at Cobblestone Restaurant, Lebanon, IL. Come share appetizers, drinks, memories, laughter, and perhaps a few tears. We’ll have music that he loved and pictures of his life. Bring your “Jeff stories”!!

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