[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 78 (Wednesday, May 20, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E767]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TITUS REMEMBERS GARY GRAY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. DINA TITUS

                               of nevada

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 20, 2015

  Ms. TITUS. Mr. Speaker, Nevada lost a very good man when Gary Gray 
was killed recently in an automobile accident coming down from his 
beloved Mt. Charleston.
  Gary has been one of my best friends since he took a master's class 
from me at UNLV in 1977. And Tom and I have enjoyed many delicious 
dinners and lively conversations about politics and travel with Gary 
and his wife Chris Giunchigliani over the years.
  It is impossible to think of Gary in the past tense because he was 
larger than life. Who else would serve mountain oysters at a fancy 
dress party? Who else could turn an inexperienced group of freshman 
assemblymen (Jim Spinello, Matt Callister, Gene Porter, and Wendall 
Williams) into a political force the likes of which has not been seen 
since in Nevada politics? And who else would be brave enough to take on 
the indomitable Chris G?
  Life was always an adventure for Gary. No place was too dangerous to 
visit, no food too strange to eat, no person too threatening to strike 
up a conversation with. So I would never have been surprised to hear 
that something had happened and he wasn't coming home. But I expected 
him to be taken from us by an earthquake in Indonesia, an avalanche in 
the Alps, or perhaps a revolution in one of the `Stans, not by 
something so mundane as a car crash. It just doesn't seem right.
  Gary truly changed the face of politics in Nevada: he elected 
candidates at every governmental level; he proudly pushed a progressive 
agenda; and he professionalized the campaign business. He was a civic 
activist, a pillar of the community, and a citizen of the world. He 
leaves a void that cannot be filled.
  Bon voyage, mon ami.

                          ____________________