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Gray, age 59, of Cooperstown, ND died Nov. 4, 2014 at Cooperstown. Funeral services will be conducted at 10:30 AM Saturday, Nov. 8th at Trinity Lutheran Church in Valley City, ND with Rev. Joanne Moeller officiating. Visitation will be from 5PM until 7 PM Friday at the church and one hour Saturday before services. A Prayer Service will begin at 7PM Friday at the church. Interment will be in Hillside Cemetery at Valley City, ND.
Terry Duane Gray was born April 9, 1955, in Valley City, ND, to Duane and Georgena (Fiske) Gray. His parents moved to Idaho where Terry attended elementary school and later to Pacoima, CA, where he attended high school. Terry died at his home on Tuesday, November 4, 2014, following complications from reconstructive knee surgery.
In 1972 he joined the Navy. After basic training in San Diego, he served aboard the minesweeper Fortify as EOD (explosive ordinance disposal). He saw Hawaii, Japan, Guam and Vietnam, performing duties in Haiphong Harbor. He was a lifetime member of the VFW.
In 1975 after being discharged from the Navy he came back to North Dakota to work for his uncle and aunt Roger and Ramona Erickson on their farm near Tower City, a young man in search of life and work away from the bustle and distractions of the Los Angeles area that had been home.
In June of 1975 he met Judith Pederson, and they were married October 24, 1975, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Valley City, ND. In 1979 son Travis was born and daughter Scarlet arrived in 1980.
Terry began work in Barnes County in 1979 first as a correctional officer and later as a deputy sheriff, Sheriff, and jail administrator, in that order. In 2003 he moved to Cooperstown, ND, where he worked for the Griggs County Sheriff’s Department until his death on November 4, 2014. Terry loved investigative police work, covering over the years numerous cases of child abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and other crimes against people and their property. He was very proud of his 34-year career in law enforcement.
During his years with both Barnes County and Griggs County he was a state-certified firearms instructor with permission to instruct in police weapons, crime scene photography, crime prevention and general police topics. He also worked as a community education officer instructing citizens on topics such as crime prevention, rape awareness, self-defense, concealed weapons testing and child safety issues. He had prepared and received numerous grants for law enforcement and community training such as Crime-Stoppers, which served six counties, and child-safety programs such as McGruff. The past two years he also provided concealed weapons training and testing in Griggs and Steele Counties.
While in Valley City he was instrumental in establishing the Abused Persons’ Outreach Center and served on its board for ten years, the maximum amount of time he could serve in that capacity.
The summer of 2014 he received enough write-in votes to become a Cooperstown city commissioner. It was important to him to do well any job that he had taken on, and so on November 3, 2014, he attended his last council meeting.
He was an avid hunter and fisherman. He enjoyed processing his own animals and turned out a lot of delicious sausage, dried venison, bacon-wrapped duck breasts, smoked trout and northern pike. He served as a Hunter’s Education instructor for 20 years providing training to students in Barnes, Griggs, and Nelson counties.
The 90’s were busy for him. He wanted to accomplish his GED before his children graduated from high school. He also took photography classes at Valley City State University. He took Travis’ and Scarlet’s senior pictures and also served as photographer for a number of weddings and other senior graduation photos. He photographed his last wedding this August for a fellow law enforcement officer.
The only thing he loved more than his hobbies was his family, doting especially on his grandchildren Perrin, Ian, and Rylee. He gave each one their first rifle and was looking forward to taking them out for their first hunting experience and teaching them to shoot.
While in Cooperstown he had also established Terry’s Sharpening Service. He enjoyed a chuckle over his slogan: The only thing we can’t sharpen is your wit. He exercised his own wit often, a trait he inherited from his maternal grandfather George Fiske.
Terry is survived by his wife of 39 years Judy; son Travis and Kim (Moritz) and granddaughter Rylee; daughter Scarlet and Ben Bernard and grandsons Perrin and Ian; parents Duane and Georgena Gray of Las Vegas, NV; sister Teresa Raglund of Monroe, MI; brother George and Blanca (Guerrero) of Palmdale, CA; mother-in-law Ruth Pederson, Cooperstown, ND; Roy and Nancy (Pederson) Smith of Gretna, MB, Canada; Craig and Marilyn (Pederson) Delzer of Fessenden, ND; Charles and Renee (Buchholz) Pederson of Lerna, IL, and numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his father-in-law Lyle S. Pederson, Cooperstown; his paternal and maternal grandparents; his uncle and aunt Roger and Ramona Erickson.
An online guest book is available at lerudschuldt.com.