Lee Garner Grayson

Lee Garner Grayson was a modest man, quiet and observant in his ways. He was trustworthy and traditional in his approach to his life and in his relationships. He was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew him. He was also a man who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything he undertook. Realistic about life, he was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility. His parents were Maria and Gilbert Gutjahr. Lee was raised in Medford, OR. He was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve him well throughout his life. As a young child, Lee was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. He wasn’t pushy and never forced his way into games or other activities. Lee developed a variety of interests, though, and the things he enjoyed doing he did well. He was always curious about the world around him and was often eager to explore it. Lee At the age of 4 or 5 he was able to identify all the continents on a map and name all the countries in Europe. He loved teddy bears and received a miniature bear that his Grand Mother brought to him from Germany. He collected coins, was an avid reader of books and comic books. Lee loved to tape record himself imitating Walter Kronkite reading the evening news. He spent many a Saturday afternoon taking bike rides on back country roads. He had a happy and hairy farm dog named Teddy when his family lived in South Dakota. However, what Lee enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with his many friends. While his teachers and even his friends generally thought of Lee as being a serious person, he managed to have a pretty good time in high school as he made that critical transition from adolescence to adulthood. He graduated from Portland Jackson High School in 1970 with honors. He enjoyed some courses more than others, having favorite classes and teachers. He played the saxophone in the marching band. He participated in baseball, track, and was on the chess team. His favorite subject was History. Lee was a very logical person who enjoyed learning about factual information. Using his exceptional memory, he was able to learn much through observation. Lee always seemed to have a command of the facts and was able to make it seem as though he could easily master any problem that might be presented to him. College life brought with it a new set of challenges, but Lee handled them well. Being a critical thinker who always remained intellectually independent, Lee was able to focus on the task at hand in order to complete his class work. He seemed to thrive on college reading assignments, something that often bogged down his classmates. Lee was able to read the material and retain the information in a way that impressed his fellow classmates. The ability to efficiently complete the task at hand was a skill that served Lee well during his college experience. Lee graduated from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, OR, Magnum cum Laude, and a Master's Degree Political Science in 1974. Lee graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law, in Eugene, OR, Doctor of Juris Prudence- PhD in Law in 1977. Lee graduated from Thunderbird University in Phoenix, AZ with a Master's Degree in International Business in 1979. As a law student, he spent half a year living in Washington, D. C. and had fond memories of living close to our government headquarters. His favorite college class was World Affairs. Lee and Joyce were first introduced through work situations. Lee had planned one of his regional trainings at the hotel where Joyce worked and she was the account manager for his event. A few years later they Joyce and her son Chris were about to have dinner in a restaurant and Lee walked in behind them. The conversation was friendly and Chris was quietly teasing his mom about Lee's friendly attentions.. At the seeing that Lee was alone, Chris invited Lee to join them at their table. Can we say match maker? And the rest is history. They were married June 24, 2003 in Lake Tahoe, CA at the Caesar's Wedding Chapel and they became a blended family. Lee was step-father to Turah Hall and Chris Nierstheimer. He was also step-grandfather "Pappa Lee", to Clarissa, Connor, and Riley Hall. He took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it his total commitment. Lee greatly enjoyed what he did for a living. He was a hard worker who expected the same in return from his co-workers. He was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. Lee enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, Lee was excellent at meeting deadlines. He was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. Lee was an Administrative Law Judge for the Oregon State Department of Transportation for 28 years. He also served as a Regional Director of Administrative Law Judges during his employment. He was responsible for developing and writing the Department's Complete Operating Manual and Procedures. At the time of his retirement in September 2010, he was the 2nd most Senior Law Judge in the State. Lee worked hard to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done. Lee liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into his hobbies, where he was very methodical in how he organized his activities and categorized things. Since he enjoyed his private time, Lee always tried to allocate a specific time for working on his hobbies. Before his declining health, Lee was an avid golfer, playing weekly. He also enjoyed jogging and walking, played on an adult soft ball team, playing pool and darts. He was a follower of world news and events and election years were his favorite. Political debate was a passion for him. He loved classic movies and actors and actresses from the 1940's and 1950's. Over the years, he had collected a vast collection of jazz piano recordings from the 1920's - 1940's. He enjoyed the eras of "piano role" style of playing. Some of his favorite artists were Fats Waller, Eddy Duchin and composer Irving Berlin. He also loved to dabble in photography. He had a passion for college football, especially the Oregon Ducks. On his last night with us he thoroughly enjoyed the Cotto VS. Canello fight, a love of boxing we both shared. Lee was content to enjoy his hobbies alone but was also willing to share his interests with others. As a man who always showed great commitment to the things he believed in, it’s little wonder that Lee was so active in his community. Being practical and mentally disciplined, Lee preferred to base his decisions on first-hand experiences. Lee was never afraid to roll up his sleeves and dig right in. Lee was a member of several community groups, including Even as his health continued to decline, he always tried to help others in need. He served holiday meals to the homeless at the Union Gospel Mission in Portland, OR. He greeted and handed out food and water to the homeless at the Las Vegas Homeless Mission. For many years he has been a sponsor of the ASPCA, has his hear so big towards animals. Lee enjoyed traveling and taking vacations. Since he was an early starter and had a knack for planning everything, traveling with Lee appeared effortless. He enjoyed researching all of his examined options and applying cost-effective planning techniques. Plus, no matter where he traveled, Lee always had a backup plan at the ready, just in case. After Lee graduated High School, he went on a trip with his parents to visit his grandmother in Germany. He also visited Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris and Vienna. His idea of a perfect vacation was a luxury hotel, luxury suite, spa, gorgeous pools, sunshine and Bloody Mary's or Martinis. Palm Springs, CA, Scottsdale, AZ and Las Vegas, NV were favorite vacation spots. Lee was a lover of animals and cherished his pets. In 2008 we bought Roxee, a West Highland Terrier into Lee's world as a companion, as he recuperated through a year and a half of 100% disability after surviving a myocardia infection and double pneumonia. She was a side kick and was such a silly, goofy girl. She would untie one shoe as he tied the other to keep him from leaving the house. He also developed a sweet relationship with a "foster dog", a Yorkshire terrier named Jack Dog. Lee retired in August 2010. He and his wife relocated to Phoenix, AZ, where Joyce accepted a job promotion. During that time, he continued to enjoy his love of water and sunshine and walked and swam as much as his health allowed. he was well prepared. He always trusted and placed value in what was logical and in the things he knew, so he was very confident in planning his retirement. He had begun the process early and had his retirement all lain out well in advance. Even in retirement, Lee continued to stay in touch with his old friends while making plenty of new acquaintances. He was active in his new community and felt fulfilled. Lee Garner Grayson passed away on November 22, 2015. Lee died peacefully at home of natural causes in Las Vegas after battling through nearly 2 years of difficult and chronic illnesses. He fought against congestive heart failure for many years, requiring and Artificial Aortic Valve replacement and triple bi-pass surgery in the mid-90s and multiple pace maker surgeries. Most recently Lee was gravely ill with bacteremia, a staphylococcus blood infection. He is survived by his wife, Joyce Grayson, of Las Vegas, his father, Gilberty Gutjahr, or Portland, OR, step-daughter and grandchildren, Turah, Clarissa, Connor and Riley Hall, of Klamath Falls, OR and step-son, Chris Nierstheimer, of Cleveland, OH. Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of Lee Garner Grayson. He was committed to living the life of a good man who was both practical and trustworthy. He was committed to the traditional values that he upheld his entire life. He committed himself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around him. Most of all, he was committed to those he knew and loved.