Gary D. Spear

Gary Dean Spear was born on August 29, 1937, on the family farm in Lincoln County.  The second child and first son of Eugene and Viola (Hanneman) Spear. He passed away on January 12, 2024, in Beloit, KS. He was a spry and ornery 86 years old.

Gary grew up on the family farm and graduated from Lincoln High School in 1955. He later attended Sheep Shearing School in Barton County. While in attendance he was chosen from his class to appear on live TV to demonstrate his shearing skills because he had the fastest time. He would also add that it was because he was the best-looking.

He followed in his dad's footsteps with his love of carpentry while working at Earl Lynn Cabinetry in Lincoln, as a finished carpenter, for the next four years until 1959. He took pride in his woodworking and shared his skills and knowledge with friends and family.

In the spring of 1959, he started working for Beloit Motor Company doing mechanics and detail.  Then in 1961, the owners of Beloit Motor told him on a Friday to come to work on Monday dressed in street clothes and attend a sales meeting. This was the first step into a career that lasted nearly 60 years. During this time, he also worked at Fuller Chevrolet and Anderson Motor, which eventually became Beloit Auto and Truck Plaza. He took great pride in having sold to the same family through four generations. In his tenure, Gary received numerous awards for exceeding established benchmarks in sales, certification, and service. One of his last awards earned was Membership in the Ford Motor Company's Legend Leaders—a distinction for his sales excellence and customer satisfaction.

Gary married Delores Donahoo on June 13, 1959. Three children were born to this union: Terri Renee, Mark Alan, and Michelle Lynn.

Gary was a proficient marksman and competed in trap shooting. He brought home many trophies and at one event attained the high score of 99 out of 100.

A lifelong dream was to be an auctioneer. In 1984, with his brother Richard, he attended auctioneer school in Iowa. As a side job, he worked for Zimmer Auction and filled in with other auction houses.

One of his greatest joys was attending his grandchildren's sporting events and school activities.   He never missed an activity that his grandchildren were in. They always knew they could look up into the crowd and he would be there, usually the first one to arrive. He could recall every detail of every event, and when he would start, he could go on for hours.

He stayed in daily contact with his family by his frequent phone calls. If one didn't answer, he would simply move on down the list to the next phone number. His family will greatly miss those phone calls and the unique and humorous voicemails he would leave.

Like clockwork, you could find Gary at The Banner restaurant every morning at 7:00, often being the first customer for the day. Everyone knew his order, 1 egg and 2 slices of toast.

Gary is preceded in death by his parents, sister Leola Effland and brother-in-law George Effland, sister-in-law Elaine Donahoo and brother-in-law Harvey Donahoo.

Gary is survived by his wife, Delores. Three children, Terri (Darrell) Kelley, Mark, and Michelle Kadel of Beloit; 7 grandchildren, Dane (Audrey) Kelley, Westminster, CO, Matt Kelley, Lenexa, KS, Erin Kelley, Superior, CO, Colton Spear, Salina, KS, Chloe (Brennen) Blaha, Kansas City, MO, Caleb (Emily) Marshall, Salina, KS, Karody Kadel, Beloit, KS; 7 great-grandchildren, Raven and Vance Dean Kelley, Ryder, Arken and Leighton Spear, Lennix and Bennett Blaha.

Gary knew no stranger and could strike up a conversation with anyone. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.

Funeral services will be at 10:30 AM Thursday, January 18 at the Beloit Methodist Church. Visitation will be from 1-7 PM with family present from 5-6 PM Wednesday at the Roberts Family Funeral Home. Memorials may be given to the Mitchell County Fair Board. Gary Spear FB live service: Click here to watch