Gary Holt Graybeal

Gary Holt Graybeal passed away at home, surrounded by family, on 12/24/22 after a year long battle with cancer. He was born January 20, 1947 in Portland, the son of Gerald (Jay) Graybeal and Betty Jane (Holt) Graybeal.

Gary graduated from Pendleton High School in 1965 and attended Blue Mountain Community College until enlisting in the service. He served with the US Army from 1967 to 1970, spending time in Vietnam. Once out of the service, Gary married Elizabeth (Buzz) Freshwater and lived in Yakima, WA where he graduated from Yakima Community College with a degree in Business Administration. After graduating, Gary worked for Cascade Gas Co until they moved back to Pendleton, OR in 1976 where Gary went to work in his parent’s Beer Distributorship as a Sales Manager. They divorced after a couple years in Pendleton and Gary met his current wife, Karen Ann (Duffey) Graybeal.  They were married in 1979, settling in Pendleton. They lived there except for 3 years between 10/2019 and 10/2022 during which time they lived in Walla Walla, WA. They celebrated 43 years of marriage in August of 2022.

After Gary’s parent retired, he became General Manager of Graybeal Distributing where he worked until retiring in 2002.  He was a member of Pendleton Country Club until it sold in 2019, Walla Walla Country Club, The Rocky Mt Elk Foundation, The Elks and The Eagles.  He served on several Boards of Directors, including Pendleton Country Club, Pendleton Buck Boosters, Friends of Pendleton Golf and the Umatilla County Red Cross, serving as Chair of the Red Cross Food and Wine Festival for several years. He volunteered for years in the Happy Canyon Show and announced the Pendleton High School Football games for 33 years, taking over from his father who did it for the 33 prior years. Through Graybeal Distributing, Gary supported many youth and adult sports and community activities, always willing to help and support in any way.

In addition to watching his children and grandchildren’s sports, Gary loved snowmobiling, golf, hunting,  fishing and being a born again cowboy, all of which he did with his wife, children and grandchildren.  He was an amazing, kind and loving father, husband, grandfather, uncle and friend.

Gary was preceded in death by his parents.  He is survived by his wife, Karen Graybeal, daughter Kylee Evans (Casey Evans) and son Travis Graybeal (Courtney Krull Graybeal) and three grandchildren, Finley Ann Evans, Adilynn Kyle Evans and Theodore (Theo) Holt Graybeal.

A Celebration of Life will be held for Gary on Friday, January 20th, 2023 at 4pm in the Roy Raley Room at the Pendleton Round-Up grounds. Those who wish to remember Gary in a special way may make gifts in his name to the Pendleton Buck Boosters or to the Walla Walla Community Hospice.