February 14, 1938 - June 07, 2016
SEWELL, Gary Lee Gary Lee Sewell entered into the presence of the Lord on June 7th, 2016. He was born in Great Falls, Montana on February 14, 1938, and graduated from Helena High School in 1957. He served four years as an A & E Mechanic at Geiger Air Force Base in Spokane, WA and then worked in ironwork and insurance sales before a long career in the plumbing and heating industry. - Gary married Sharon Ricker in 1958 and later Mikell Roberts in 1981. He had a love and talent for singing and performed with the Pages of Harmony and numerous barber shop quartets. He had a leading role in the Spokane Civic Theater's production of the musical Annie Get Your Gun and performed with his quartet in The Music Man. He also sang in the Sacred Heart Medical Centers Heart Follies. He played and collected guitars for over 40 years and built his own acoustic guitar at the age of 77. A natural athlete, Gary ran in every Bloomsday from 1976 to 2014; many of those as part of his training for the fourteen marathons he ran. He was an avid golfer and experienced pilot. Last year Gary was surprised with the opportunity to fly a newer Cessna 182; thank you John Engebretson and Don Rock as it meant so much to him. - Gary loved dogs. He had a special attachment to his cockers Bo and Bailey and in the last year his cockapoo Patches could usually be found faithfully curled up at his feet. Gary was an incredible man who loved deeply, created laughter and impacted everyone he met. The family would like to give a special thanks to his step daughter Shelli Roberts for her tireless effort to care for our beloved Gary in the last few months. - Gary was preceded in death by his father George Sewell, mother Opal Rosebud, brother Robert and son Michael. He is survived by his wife Mikell Sewell and his former wife Sharon Sewell; two children Doug (Nola) Sewell and Lori (Larry) Koenen; two stepchildren Brent (Carisa) Roberts and Shelli Roberts (John); siblings, Carol Palmlund, Ron Sewell, Vicki Cornell, Myrna Holombo, Marla Singleton, Dick Sullivan and Billie Jean Estes; sister-in-law Toni Black; eleven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. - The family has chosen to celebrate Gary's life privately, therefore no memorial will be held. In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to Hospice of Spokane or SCRAPS (Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service).
