GARY GROSS
GARY WAYNE GROSS 1938 - 2013 On March 1, 2013, with his sister by his side, Gary passed into eternal rest. Gary is survived by his sister, Joy (Gordon) French; his nephew, Perry (Holly) French of Winnipeg; great-nieces, Caitlin and Kira, and great-nephew, Nicholas French; Gary's niece, Kara Leckman (Shane Hubick) of Calgary and great-niece Taylor and great-nephew Matthew Leckman, and many cousins. He also leaves many wonderful friends. Gary was predeceased by his mother, Emma in 1986 and his father, Paul in 2005. Gary was born in Winnipeg on July 3, 1938 and grew up in the North End of the city, with the exception of three years on Garfield Street, first on Boyd Avenue and later Inkster Boulevard. Gary began his musical education at age four. He was conversant with several keyboard instruments including synthesizers and pioneered in the area of computer synthesis in Canada. At the age of eight years Gary won the Eatons' Good Deed Talent Contest. His experiences ranged from performance to academia, conducting, arranging and composition. Early in his career he taught for the Saskatoon Piano House, the Edmonton College of Music, Harry Deeley's Music Schools of Winnipeg and the California College of Music. In Manitoba, he founded and operated a chain of seven rural stores and studios. During his association with Jazz musician and Educator Phil Nimmons of Toronto, Gary was a clinical guest lecturer at York University and at the inaugural Jazz Program at the Banff School of Fine Arts. Gary was a respected media musician and had long been involved in radio, television and associated media. Before moving to Toronto and living there for 30 years, Gary was very involved in the Night Club scene in Winnipeg. He played "Chans" in the Moon Room and was part of the trio called The Nocturnes which included Dave Shaw and Del Wagner, "The Towers - Town & Country" as "The Gary Gross Quartette" including Reg Kelln, Bob Erlendson and Harold Olson, "Club Morocco" with musician Al Sprintz and finally the Pan Am Lounge at the "International Inn" where he was part of a duo with singer and drummer, Aubrey Tadman. Gary moved to Toronto in 1968. Some of the venues in Toronto were "Julie's" Nightclub and The Royal York Hotel. Gary worked on many TV Specials and Presentation Shows. Among his many TV Series Shows he worked on for many years were Front Page Challenge, This is the Law, The Tommy Hunter Show, the children's show Friendly Giant and many more. He recorded 13 albums with Jackie Rae's "The Spitfire Band" (big band sound). Gary was also a patented inventor in the realm of audio encryption. In the 1970s, sponsored by Rothman's of Canada, Gary and his entourage, singers, dancers and musicians travelled to the Middle East, Cyprus, Egypt and Germany to entertain the Peacekeeping Troups. Gary moved back to Winnipeg in 1997 and in 2004 accepted a position to entertain on the maiden voyage of the Royal Caribbean Ocean Liner "Mariner of the Seas" with starting point being Turku, Finland. After docking in Florida Gary had to end his term of commitment due to the illness of our father. Besides music, Gary's other great passion was golf. He loved the game and excelled at it and was proud to have achieved a hole in one in his lifetime. A big thank you to his caregivers, Dr. Piotr Czaykowski and Denise at CancerCare, Olga his Palliative Care Nurse, the staff at Riverview and the Grace Hospice, all the wonderful friends who came to see him and who phoned him, and his dear friends, Vicki and Bob Reid of Toronto, who flew in from their vacation home in Florida to spend two days with Gary a week before his passing. A private family burial took place on Wednesday, March 6, at Brookside Cemetery officiated by the Rev. Kolleen Karlowsky-Clark. Pallbearers were Rudy Schoetz, Barry Smith, Harold Gross, Clifford Gross, Gordon French, Perry French and Nicholas French. A Celebration of Gary's Life will take place on Tuesday, March 12, 2013, at 11:00 a.m. at The United Church in Meadowood, 1111 Dakota St. with Rev. Shelly Manley-Tannis officiating. Reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, if friends so desire, donations can be made to The Winnipeg Humane Society, 45 Hurst Way, Winnipeg, MB R3T 0R3. NEIL BARDAL FUNERAL CENTRE 204-949-2200 www.nbardal.mb.ca