Gary Krueger Obituary

Gary was a friend of mine in Texas. He was kind hearted. He was thoughtful and caring for others. In 2021 his neighbor in Colorado caught Covid while on vacation. Gary called to see if I could help the husband who was trapped in the hospital. Gary had been praying and I joined him to pray for him as well. I will always remember Gary for his effort to save his neighbor. He was all in when it came to helping others! God bless you Gary. We will miss your humor and your unique way of cheering all of us up. I know the arms of God are wrapping around you. Save me a seat!

I went to church with Gary in Texas. And, was his friend on Facebook. He was/is such an encourager. He lit up what can be a dark space with his humor and sweet kindness. I´m so happy for him to be home and free from the pain and confines of this world. Yet I feel for his siblings who loved their brother. May God comfort you all.

Gary and I go way back to our days at Shady Grove Church, when life felt wide open and the future was something we stayed up late trying to figure out. We spent countless late nights and early mornings together nights over coffee, talking about hopes, dreams, and all the versions of ourselves we thought we might become. Gary always had big dreams. Bigger than he gave himself credit for.

He was one of the funniest people I knew. Not loud or attention-seeking funny, but quietly sharp, the kind that would catch you off guard and make you laugh when you least expected it. And he was thoughtful in a way that stuck with you. Gary had a way of making people feel seen, like they mattered.

I´ll never forget the night he invited me over to his apartment in Euless for dinner. At the time, he was working as a butcher at Albertsons, and he cooked one of the best steaks I´ve ever had. It was such a "Gary" moment, quietly impressive, no big deal made of it, just something he did well without needing applause. He even cleaned his bathroom! (He was so proud of himself!)

After he left Texas, we reconnected and talked often. Long phone calls, picking up right where we left off. After his stroke, though, things changed. He became self-conscious about his texting, and those conversations slowly faded. I wish I had pushed harder to keep them going.

Gary loved animals, especially cats. When I had him over after I got married, my three Great Pyrenees gave him their full inspection. He passed. They adored him instantly, which tells you just about everything you need to know about his heart.

I always believed Gary would step fully into the life he imagined for himself... the speaker, the comedian, the writer. He had that spark. When he used it, people felt better about themselves. They felt important. That´s a rare gift.

Gary was deeply loved. I just don´t think he ever fully felt it, or believed he was worthy of it. And that´s the part that´s hard to sit with.

There´s something bittersweet about him leaving this world on Valentine´s Day. A day meant for love. My hope, my prayer, is that he now knows - fully and without doubt - the love and acceptance he may have struggled to feel here.

Gary, you were loved. You are still loved. And you mattered more than you ever knew.

My words can't express how much Gary meant to me. My condolences and prayers to his family.

I just now found out that you have gone on to be with Jesus my friend and how special it is that it was on Valentine´s Day . I´ll miss conversing with you but I rejoice in that I´ll see you again! I´m sure Maggie is in good hands and well taken care of. Until we meet again brother

I had the pleasure of meeting Gary in seventh grade. He was somewhat shy but my outgoing personally we became friends fast. Then in high school we ran track together. He was a super star. We lost touch for a few years after high school but reconnecting again on Facebook. We shared the love of animals, especially kitty cats. As Tom stated earlier, he was such a great writer. After surviving a brain aneurysm and stroke on the operating table and my boyfriend of seven weeks saved my life. We talked about it many times that he would write our story. I already miss him so much. He was kind, considerate and loving
Rest in peace, my friend.

My friendship with Gary goes back to the first grade in Mrs Buchan´s class. Gary always reminded me of his first memory of our friendship. I was digging a tunnel in the sandbox and Gary came over and started digging a tunnel across from me. After a while I said to Gary "I´m not going to hit you Gary." He was puzzled by my statement. He was glad that I wasn´t going to hit him but unsure as to why I needed to tell him that. As we kept digging I again said "I´m not going to hit you Gary". Gary was really confused. Finally I said to him "Gary, if you keep digging in that direction our tunnels won´t hit each other to complete the tunnel". Now it made sense to Gary. He could stop worrying about me possibly wanting to hit him. We were close friends from that moment. All through elementary, jr high and high school and into college. When he moved to Texas we lost contact for a few years but I finally tracked him down by calling his parents. I was able to visit him a couple times in Texas and after he moved to Colorado I was able to visit him a couple times there. It was great when texting and then Facebook came around and we were able to keep in contact much better. Gary was such a good writer that reading his texts and posts were much more than just keeping in touch. He could make the simplest things seem so grand and his words always played like a movie in my head as I read them. He was also just a really nice guy. We would go to in n out burger and just eat and talk and feed the birds French fries for hours. Gary was so easy to be around. I am so sad that he is gone and I will miss him immensely but I am thankful that he was my friend for all these years. I am a much better person for knowing him.