Gary E. Smith     April 18, 1940 - July 23, 2018

Gary Eugene Smith, 78, of Brogan, passed away on Monday July 23, 2018 in a Portland hospital with family by his side. Gary was born April 18, 1940 in Ontario, Oregon to Eugene and Elizabeth (Lequerica) Smith.

Gary graduated from Vale Union High School in 1958 as a multi-year letterman in three sports and attended Boise Junior College, where he played football on a Junior College National Championship team. He transferred to Oregon State University (OSU) where he received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. While at OSU, Gary married his high school sweetheart, Myrna Pershall of Willowcreek, and they had three children, Thad, Stephanie and Elaine.

Gary received his Doctorate in Animal Nutrition from Purdue University. He subsequently taught Animal Science at the University of Wyoming, becoming internationally recognized for publishing nearly 50 research papers and speaking at Cambridge University in England. Gary moved to New Jersey in 1970 to work in animal research at Merck and Company. He returned to Brogan in 1979 to help his parents run the family ranch and he quickly became an active member of the Brogan and Vale communities. In 1982, Gary married Marjorie Wetjen, who brought three daughters to his family.

Gary was preceded in death by his grandparents Smith and Lequerica and his parents. He is survived by his wife Marjorie and children, son Thad (Rebecca) Smith of Grayslake, IL, daughters Stephanie (Ross) Smith of Bloomington, IN and Elaine (Padmadharni) Smith of Stockton, NJ; Meredith Studdard of Vancouver, WA, Jennifer (Erik) Jacobs of Wilder, ID, and Stephanie Wetjen of Portland, OR, and eleven grandchildren.

We will remember Gary for his zest for life, his abundant enthusiasm, his wide-ranging intelligence, and his wonderful sense of humor. He admirably lived life on his own terms while also managing to be generous with his time. Anybody who traveled with him to town would find themselves witness to spontaneous conversations with one acquaintance or new friend after another. He loved taking drives in Willow Creek Canyon and rooting for Boise State and Oregon State teams. His commitment to fundraising for his home town’s fire department, Japanese garden and community park led him and wife Margie, along with Richard Chubb, to establish Brogan’s “Nutty” Brunch and International Cow Pie Toss.

A celebration of Gary’s life will be held on Saturday, August 18, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. at the Vale Fire Hall in Vale, Oregon. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to the Vale Rural Fire Protection District, P. O. Box 325, Vale, OR 97918 or the Vale High School Alumni Association for student scholarships, P. O. Box 274, Vale, OR 97918.