Bob Gage

Bobby Loyd Gage died October 1, 2013 at his home in Columbia.  He was born in Healdton, OK on March 14,1932.

He is survived by his wife Gay Gage, daughter Kim Gage Ryan; grandsons John Keller Ryan and William Gage Ryan and great-grandson Oliver William Ryan.  He is also survived by his brother Kenneth Rex Gage (Ruby) of Pampa, TX, as well as his good friend of 71 years, Glenn Stevens of Fort Lauderdale, FL.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Allie Foster Gage and Earl Lee Gage, two brothers and five sisters.

In lieu of a memorial service, there will be an open house at the home of his daughter at 3100 Yorktown, Columbia MO, Sunday October 6 at 3:00 – 6:00.  In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be sent to The Bethany Fellowships c/o 3100 Yorktown Drive, Columbia, MO 65203

Bob grew up in Texas attending schools in Lefors and Pampa, graduating from Pampa High School in 1950.  He attended Amarillo College and graduated from West Texas A & M University in 1973 with a Bachelors of Science in Education.

He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force July 11, 1951.  He had his basic training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, TX. He was then selected to be trained as an aircraft mechanic at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita, TX for Reciprocating and Jet Aircraft.  Following this, he was assigned to the 3750^th Technical Squadron as a Technical Instructor for A & E mechanics training.  While in Wichita Falls, he met Gay Wortman.  She was the Executive Secretary for the President of the Chamber of Commerce.  They were married September 4, 1953.

Bob was discharged from military service July 10, 1955.  Bob and Gay then moved to Amarillo, TX where he was employed in civil service by the U.S. Air Force as a Technical Instructor.  His employment with the Air Force ended when he accepted a position as Mechanical Quality Assurance Inspector of nuclear weapons with the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (USAEC) at Pantex Plant.  Other positions he held included Quality Auditor, Quality Analyst, Industrial Specialist, Manager of Quality Insurance/St. Petersburg, FL, Safety Manager for Waste Isolation Pilot Project/Carlsbad, NM and Manager of Environment, Safety and Emergency Preparedness/Amarillo, TX.   He retired from government service October 20, 1990 and moved to Columbia, MO January 1991.

For many years Bob served as a deacon, elder and Sunday School teacher in the First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Amarillo, TX.  In Columbia, he was the Coordinator for Broadway Christian Church’s RAIN(Regional Aids Interfaith Network) Care Team.

In Bob’s words recently:

Above all else, the great joy in our family life was when our daughter, Kim Denise Gage, was born February 26, 1958.  I never knew there could be such enjoyment in life as what our daughter has meant to us.  Then we found out what joy grandsons could and always would be.  Never will our grandchildren be anything but the most wonderful part of our lives and now we have our great-grandson, Oliver William Ryan.  I have had a great life with my family which included 28 nieces and nephews and 59 great nieces and nephews.