Gary R. Haynes was born in Quincy, Illinois on August 16th, 1944 to parents Orrin and Marjorie. He accepted Jesus as his Savior in 1978. He passed away at age 77 in Colorado Springs, Colorado on September 16th, 2021.
Gary graduated from Palmer High School, University of Colorado Boulder (Civil Engineering and Business dual degree), and Webster University (MBA).
Gary was a Civil Engineer and served as the City Engineer for the city of Colorado Springs. He began his 35-year career with the City in 1970, became City Engineer in 1983, and retired in 2005. He was responsible for many projects, including the Colorado Avenue Bridge, Austin Bluffs Parkway, and the Colorado Springs Airport. Gary received special recognition from the city and community for outstanding commitment and contribution, including from The Pikes Peak Trails Coalition, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, USAF Academy (Department of Civil Engineering), League of Women Voters, and the President of Colorado College.
He will be dearly missed by his family, and his friends from Colorado and Florida. Gary was an avid fan of baseball (Colorado Rockies season tickets since 1993 inaugural season), college football, and cycling races. He loved spending time with family, taking grandkids to the park and lunch, long road trips around the country to National Parks and historical sites, and wintering yearly in Marco Island, Florida. He loved Colorado, including skiing, golfing, feeding hummingbirds, relaxing in Redstone CO, authentic Mexican food, and local Colorado wines.
Gary is survived by his wife of 51 years Lenetta Haynes, son Greg R. Haynes, son Aaron Haynes and Aaron's wife Jennifer. He has three grandchildren, Isabelle, Isaac, and Ilias. He is also survived by his brother Mark (wife Marta), sister-in-law Julie (wife of Bruce), and many nephews, nieces, and cousins. Gary was preceded in death by his mother Marjorie, father Orrin, and brothers Kent and Bruce.
A public viewing will be held from 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM Friday, September 24th, at Swan-Law Funeral Directors, 501 N Cascade Ave, followed by a private family burial at 2:00 PM. A public Celebration of Life Service will be held at 1:00 PM Saturday, September 25th, at Pulpit Rock Church, 301 Austin Bluffs Pkwy.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made "In Memory of Gary Haynes" to one of these charities:
Camp Elim, 5567 Painted Rocks Rd, Woodland Park CO 80863
Young Life, P.O. Box 70065, Prescott AZ 86304-7065 (also include "CO71 Pikes Peak" on the check)
Colorado Springs Little League, P.O. Box 76742, Colorado Springs CO 80970.
