William Gray - Obituary

r. William D. Gray, Jr., better known as Bill Gray, died at his home in Oxon Hill, MD on September 18, 2007 from complications of lung cancer. He was 79 years of age. He is survived by his wife, Jean B. Gray of Oxon Hill MD, his son, Robert H. Gray and daughter-in-law, Georgia Emery Gray of Washington, DC. His daughter, Debbie died, in 1998 leaving two grandchildren, Andrew and Heidi, as well as, a son-in law, Ken Gradall of Baraboo WI. He is also survived by a sister, Mrs. Thomas B. Agerton, Jr. of Winter Haven, Florida, his nephew,, Thomas B. Agerton III of Hayesville, North Carolina and his niece, Carole Moorman of Winter Haven, Florida. Bill was a native of Winter Haven, Florida, where he attended public schools, graduating in the high school class of 1946. He attended Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina, for a year and a half on a Navy scholarship and served one year on active duty as a midshipman. During the Korean conflict he joined the United States Army and earned Military Occupational Specialties (M.O.S.'s) as a combat infantryman, tank commander and artillery forward observer. In 1955 he graduated from Florida State University with a major in political science and a minor in history; thereafter, he spent twelve years working for three state agencies in Tallahassee, Florida. Mr. Gray began his career as a civilian personnel manager in Washington DC in 1967. Prior to his retirement in 1989, Mr. Gray was head of civilian personnel operations at the headquarters of the Chief of Naval Research. His service in Washington also included the organization and staffing of the headquarters of the Pay Board in Phase II of President Richard Nixon's Economic Stabilization Plan. Mr. Gray was a sailing enthusiast. He participated in sailboat races on the Potomac and on the Chesapeake Bay for several decades. He was also a member of Gray Memorial Methodist Church in Tallahassee, Florida. Relatives and friends are invited to Mr. Gray's Life Celebration on Saturday, September 29, 2007 at the GEORGE P. KALAS FUNERAL HOME, P.A., 6160 Oxon Hill Rd., Oxon Hill, MD 20745 at 10 am. Interment private. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in his memory to the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Office of Advancement 3300 White Haven Street NW, Washington D.C 20007.