Vincent Clement Gray married Gloria Anne (Borba) August 23, 1969, at St. George's Church, Ontario, California.
Two children born to their union:
Kevin Vincent Gray, their first son, was born on his Aunt Cecilia's birthday,
July 17, 1970, at Prescott. His great
Aunt Darlene was in town and took movies of them leaving the hospital.
He was baptised at the new Sacred Heart Parish Center, and his uncle Bob Gray and his aunt Marie Borba were his godparents.
Their second son, Scott Patrick Gray was born the following year, December 14, 1971. His godparents were Tim Gray and Joanne Borba.
Vincent Clement Gray was born on February 2, 1948, at Saint Mary's Hospital in East Saint Louis, Illinois, to Ceil and Bob Gray. He attended Saint Michael's School in Weimar, Texas, and Sacred Heart School, in Prescott, Az.
He attended Saint Joseph's Academy, and was in the final graduating class, 1966 when The Academy was closed. The school was dismantled in 1967 to build the Sacred Heart Parish Center.
Vince worked in Prescott for the Yavapai County Youth Center at the swimming pool.
After graduation from
NAU,
Vince went to work for the Boy's Club.
Clell McClung had established a Boy's Club in Prescott.
Vince got a position as Recreation Supervisor for the City of
Glendale, Arizona. He became the Golf Coach at Bourgade High School. Vince and Gloria built a beautiful home and they are avid golf fans and work with kids on the Hook a Kid on Golf
program.
In March 2000, Vince went to work for the City of Peoria, Arizona, as recreation supervisor.
Gloria has been an executive secretary for a group of lawyers in Phoenix for many years.
Vince and Gloria were world travellers even before Scott went
to work for Southwest Airlines.
Vince has golfed in Scotland at Saint Andrews, and also in Hawaii. Gloria and Vince went to Italy with Scott when he graduated from High School.
Kevin Gray married Suzanne (Adamson), in Highland, Utah, on August 12, 2000.
Their daughter,
Natalie Addison Gray, was born on 2-2-2002. Her grandpa's birthday.
Scott married Jamie Sweetman on September 21, 2002. They went to live in Connecticut, where Scott works for his father-in-law as a distributor of Budweiser beer products.
Their son, Liam Murphy Gray was born on December 2, 2005.
Boris works as an independent reseller of clean air and water purifiers.
If you listen to talk radio, like Dr. Laura, Sean Hannity, Michael
Medved, Mike Gallagher, G. Gordon Liddy etc. you may have heard of the products
"Living Air" from Eco Quest, you can read more about it at: http://www.freshairliving.com/newce if you want to check it out, you need a
password which is "guest". Gloria and Vince, Joanne and Mark each have
one, and they wouldn't be without it now!! If you know of anyone who could
use these products, refer them to the site, and Boris will be glad talk
with them.
Boris is doing this in addition to the audio recording and tape duplication, and website design business we have had for the last ten years.
--- September 2002
Vince Gray
Vince Gray was a tad suspicious when nobody on the awards committee at the Arizona Parks and Recreation Association returned his phone calls.
.........................................................................
Vince Gray, CPRP
Recreation Supervisor THIS IS BEAUTIFUL ......AND YOU WILL CRY...
Sally jumped up as soon as she saw the surgeon come out of the operating room. She said: "How is my little boy? Is he going to be all right? When can I see him?"
The surgeon said, "I'm sorry. We did all we could, but your boy didn't make it."
Sally said, "Why do little children get cancer? Doesn't God care any more? Where were you, God, when my son needed you?"
The surgeon asked, "Would you like some time alone with your son? One of the nurses will be out in a few minutes, before he's transported to the university."
Sally asked the nurse to stay with her while she said good-bye to son. She ran her fingers lovingly through his thick red curly hair.
"Would you like a lock of his hair?" the nurse asked.
Sally nodded yes. The nurse cut a lock of the boy's hair, put it in a plastic bag and handed it to Sally. The mother said, "It was Jimmy's idea to donate his body to the university for study. He said it might help somebody else. "I said no at first, but Jimmy said, 'Mom, I won't be using it after I die. Maybe it will help some other little boy spend one more day with his Mom" She went on, "My Jimmy had a heart of gold. Always thinking of someone else. Always wanting to help others if he could."
Sally walked out of Children's mercy Hospital for the last time, after spending most of the last six months there. She put the bag with Jimmy's belongings on the seat beside her in the car. The drive home was difficult. It was even harder to enter the empty house. She carried Jimmy's belongings, and the plastic bag with the lock of his hair to her son's room. She started placing the model cars and other personal things back in his room exactly where he had always kept them. She laid down across his bed and, hugging his pillow, cried herself to sleep.
It was around midnight when Sally awoke. Laying beside her on the bed was a folded letter. The letter said:
"Dear Mom, I know you're going to miss me; but don't think that I will ever forget you, or stop loving you, just 'cause I'm not around to say I LOVE YOU I will always love you, Mom, even more with each day. Someday we wi ll see each other again. Until then, if you want to adopt a little boy so you won't be so lonely, that's okay with me. He can have my room and old stuff to play with. But, if you decide to get a girl instead, she probably wouldn't like the same things us boys do. You'll have to buy her dolls and stuff girls like, you know. Don't be sad thinking about me. This really is a neat place. Grandma and Grandpa met me as soon as I got here and showed me around some, but it will take a long time to see everything. The ang els are so cool. I love to watch them fly. And, you know what? Jesus doesn't look like any of his pictures. Yet, when I saw Him, I knew it was Him. Jesus himself took me to see GOD! And guess what, Mom? I got to sit on God's knee and talk to Him! , like I was somebody important. That's when I told Him that I wanted to write you a letter, to tell you good-bye and everything. But I already knew that wasn't allowed. Well, you know what Mom? God handed me some paper and His own personal pen to write you this letter. I think Gabriel is the name of the angel who is going to drop this letter off to you. God said for me to give you the answer to one of the questions you asked Him 'Where was He when I needed him?' "God said He was in the same place with me, as when His son Jesus was on the cross. He was right there, as He always is with all His children.
Oh, by the way, Mom, no one else can see what I've written except you. To everyone else this is just a blank piece of p aper. Isn't that cool? I have to give God His pen back now. He needs it to write some more names in the Book of Life. Tonight I get to sit at the table with Jesus for supper. I'm, sure the food will be great.
Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. I don't hurt anymore. The cancer is all gone. I'm glad because I couldn't stand that pain anymore and God couldn't stand to see me hurt so much, either. That's when He sent The Angel of Mercy to come get me. The Angel said I was a Special Delivery! How about that?
Signed with Love from: God, Jesus & Me.
Wed, 15 Dec 2004 7:37:50 -0500 ..........................
We are in Connecticut visiting with Scott and Jamie. Going to NYC today
to see the Rockettes and tomorrow going to the Norman Rockwell Museum
about an hour away. We will be home Saturday around midnight.
Mon, 2 May 2005 17:46:32 -0700
Hi Bob:
We will add Brian and his family to our prayer list. My young cousin
(34) was in a motorcycle accident last week, and almost died due to
loss of blood. If his friend hadn't been right behind him and saw what
happened, he would be dead. He is going to make it; but for a while it
was touch and go. It was just a freak accident as he is a careful
driver.
Marie and Boris
JUST DO IT! -Vince
We are golfing this weekend in the valley and next Saturday is the Bourgade Golf Tourney. Then we are going to the cabin on October 2 for NAU
Homecoming. I will be going to Reno in mid October for the NRPA Congress. Still
looking to retire around November 1, as I have a trip planned for Notre Dame-Tennessee football game on November 6 in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Retirement
Peoria recreation leader retiring on top of his game
Our Peoria Recreation Supervisor served as the committee chairman in 2003 when APRA chose its Recreation Professional of the Year. So, when the time came to pick a winner this year, Gray phoned the committee to let them know he was available again to help in the process.
"I thought maybe I did a bad job or something because nobody was getting back to me," Gray said.
It turns out that Gray was far from doing a bad job. His calls weren't returned because he actually won the award.
"Winning that totally blew me away," Gray said. "I thought, this is a good way to go out."
Like an NFL quarterback retiring after winning a Super Bowl, Gray is leaving the recreation field after serving children and adult programs for 35 years - the last five heading up Peoria's recreation programs. Gray is moving into sporting good sales in an attempt to recharge his passion for work, although if you ask Gray, his work is his passion.
"I don't consider this work," Gray said. "I love what I do. It's just time to do something else. Whenever you lose the passion in any way, it's time to do something else. But I always knew getting involved in sports at some level was something I wanted to do."
After living in Texas for half of his childhood, Gray's formative years came in Prescott, where he attended a Catholic high school that no longer exists before enrolling at Northern Arizona University. After graduating from NAU in 1970, Gray spent the next 10 years running sports programs for the Phoenix Boys Club, which is now the Phoenix Boys and Girls Club. From there, he was hired to run the recreation programs for the City of Glendale, where he worked for 20 years.
"I think some people still think I work for Glendale," Gray joked. "But then I moved to Peoria because I really needed a shot in the arm, and I got it here."
In his 4-1/2 years in Peoria, Gray's programs have twice been one of the finalist for the top recreation program in the nation. Peoria is a finalist this year, and Gray and nine others from the department will be attending the National Parks and Recreation Association's convention in Reno in two weeks. While there, the group will also put out feelers to find Gray's replacement.
"Who wouldn't want this job?" Gray said. "This is a great program with great support staff in a great place. I don't think they'll have a problem finding somebody good to take this job."
Peoria Community Services
8401 W. Monroe St. - Room 180
Peoria, AZ 85345
(623) 773-7129 Phone
Elizabeth (Liz) Vogel. Do we have any Vogels in the family tree. The grandparents are from Illinois originally, then more recently Huntinton, Ind. Her parents names are James and Nancy. Nancy is a VERY traditional Catholic, sounds almost pre- 60's. She thinks the present diocese is of the New Order.
Vince
Thanks for keeping us informed.
Keeper
I grew up in the 40s/50s with practical parents. A
mother, God love her, who washed aluminum foil after
she cooked in it, then reused it. She was the original recycle
queen, before they had a Name for it... A father who was happier
getting old shoes fixed than buying new ones.
Their marriage was good, their dreams focused. Their
best friends lived barely a wave away. I can see them
now, Dad in trousers, tee shirt and a hat and Mom in a house dress,
lawn mower in one hand, and dish-towel in the other. It was the time
for fixing things. A curtain rod, the kitchen radio, screen door,
the oven door, the hem in a dress Things we keep.
It was a way of life, and sometimes it made me crazy.
All that re-fixing, eating, renewing, I wanted just
once to be wasteful. Waste meant affluence. Throwing
things away meant you knew there'd always be more.
But then my mother died, and on that clear summer's
night, in the warmth of the hospital room, I was
struck with the pain of learning that sometimes there
isn't any more.
Sometimes, what we care about most gets all used up
and goes away...never to return. So... while we have
it... it's best we love it.... and care for it... and
fix it when it's broken...... and heal it when it's
sick.
This is true. for marriage..... and old cars... and children with
bad report cards..... and dogs with bad hips... and aging
parents..... and grandparents. We keep them because they are worth
it, because we are worth it. Some things we keep. Like a best friend
that moved away or a classmate we grew up with.
There are just some things that make life important,
like people we know who are special..... and so, we
keep them close!
I received this from someone who thinks I am a
'keeper', so I've sent it to the people I think of in
the same way.. Now it's your turn to send this to
those people that are "keepers" in your life Good
friends are like stars... You don't always see them,
but you know
they are always there.
Keep them close!
TEN THINGS GOD WON'T ASK ON THAT DAY.
1... God won't ask what kind of car you drove. He'll
ask how many people you drove who didn't have transportation.
2... God won't ask the square footage of your house,
He'll ask how many people you welcomed into your home.
3... God won't ask about the clothes you had in your closet, He'll
ask how many you helped to clothe.
4... God won't ask what your highest salary was. He'll
ask if you compromised your character to obtain it.
5... God won't ask what your job title was. He'll ask
if you performed your job to the best of our ability.
6... God won't ask how many friends you had. He'll ask
how many people to whom you were a friend.
7... God won't ask in what neighborhood you lived,
He'll ask how you treated your neighbors.
8... God won't ask about the color of your skin, He'll
ask about the content of your character.
9... God won't ask why it took you so long to seek Salvation.
He'll lovingly take you to your mansion in heaven, and not to the gates of
Hell.
10... God won't have to ask how many people you
forwarded this to, He already knows your decision.