Alec Gray

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Alec Gray, a beloved man who warmed countless hearts throughout the world. Alec passed away peacefully on April 27th, 2024, at the age of 92, in the presence of his loving wife, Mary.
Born in Washington, D.C., Alec attended school in Virginia, then graduated from Mercersburg. Academy in 1950. He went on to Dartmouth College, where he graduated in 1954 with a degree in history. After college, he served in the U.S. Army, conducting counter-intelligence work in Japan, followed by duty in the Army Reserve until 1962. When he returned to the U.S. in 1957, he started his business career in New York, where he joined the sales department for Pan American Airlines. He traveled the world, showing travel agents and corporate clients the spectacular destinations served by the company. Pan Am took him to Minneapolis, where he met and married his first wife, Katherine Berghuis, in 1960. In 1966, they welcomed the birth of their son, Sandy, and in 1969, the birth of their daughter, Beth. They relocated with their young family to the Chicago area in 1972, where he continued to lead the regional Pan Am sales team, remaining dedicated for 34 years to the nation’s flagship airline until its demise in 1991. Alec continued his career in travel industry sales, eventually retiring from the Chicago Radisson Hotel in 1996. After the death of his first wife, Alec married Mary Kochmann in 1996. They retired to Ottertail Lake and Oviedo, Florida. Eventually, they split their time between the lake and other Minnesota homes. Alec was a very devoted father and grandad, always supporting and participating in the various activities and sports pursued by his children and grandchildren over the past several decades. He remained a diehard Chicago Cubs fan until the end, played tennis well into his 80s, and was always welcoming to everyone around him with his warm smile and happy demeanor. Christianity was core to Alec’s beliefs and how he conducted his life. He served various leadership positions for two decades at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in Deerfield, Illinois, was a long-time member at St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Oviedo, Florida, and St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Perham, Minnesota. Later in life, studying scripture, praying, and keeping Christian principles at the forefront of his mind served him well as it would be difficult to find a person with anything but good things to say about Alec Gray. Eventually, Alzheimer’s disease eroded Alec’s mind and body and he joined the Lord, peacefully in his sleep. Although he has left this world, he has found peace in Heaven now. Alec was preceded in death by his parents, Welles and Arbutus, and his first wife Kathy. Succeeding him are his wife Mary, son Sandy (Cameron), daughter Beth (Vanessa), stepsons Mike (Tracy), Chris (Melanie), Rob, and Chuck, eight grandchildren, and a great-grandson. He was deeply loved and will be dearly missed by his devoted family, as well as countless friends at the lake, on the tennis courts, and innumerable other places around the world.
A visitation celebrating Alec's life will be held on June 15th, 2024, at Peterson-Grimsmo Funeral Chapel, 250 Broadway Street East, Monticello, Minnesota, from 2-4 pm.

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests that donations be made to the Hospice Support Foundation
(www.hospicesupportfoundation.org).
Though Alec may no longer walk among us, his spirit will forever live on in the hearts and memories of those who were fortunate enough to know him. May he rest in eternal peace.

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