Gary Glenn Gaston

Gary Glenn Gaston was born in Topeka, Kansas on Easter Sunday, April 16, 1933 and died of complications of Alzheimer's disease on March 6, 2023. He was 89 years old. Loved ones who passed before him include his parents, Glenn Ernest and Frances Catherine (Griffith) Gaston, and his sister Anne Catherine (Gaston) Newton. He loved his dogs Ringsey, Trouble, Kelly and Brook. He is survived by his wife Doris (Destremps) Gaston; his children Cheri (Robert) Remington, Valerie Gaston, Linda (Dave) Hill, Steven (Barbara) Gaston, Catherine (Greg) Martinelli; grandchildren Sonny (Wendy) Littlejohn, Gary Littlejohn, Ravi Gaston, Phoenix Gaston, Jennifer (Justin) Oliver, Nathan Hill, Jessica (Joshua) Wales, Amy (Caleb) Lee, Laura Martinelli, Kyle (Bailee) Martinelli; great-grandchildren Liam Euliss, Rebecca Oliver, Zoey Wales, Lillian Lee, Steven Lee and Macklin Martinelli; two sisters, Mary (Jerry) Whitten, Virginia (Mike) Jarrell.

Gary is reputed to have been a handful as a child and it started early. When he was an infant, his mother laid him on a blanket on the living room floor and went into another room. When she came back, he was gone. After a frantic search, he was found fast asleep under the couch where he had rolled himself quite precociously. He was a great brother who helped watch his younger sisters and taught them songs like Old Mr. Blue Jay. He loved riding his bike and taking his dog Trouble for ice cream. He even went on a twelve-mile ride to celebrate his 81st birthday and kept pedaling for a couple more years. He played football and loved to tinker with cars. He split the manifold on his parents' car without permission and had to put it back when they found out.

He proudly served in the navy from 1953 to 1957. He spent much time sailing the ocean blue making stops in Nice, Cannes, and St. Nazaire, France; Barcelona, Spain; Leghorn, Naples, and San Remo, Italy; Port Au Prince, Hatii; and Santiago, and Havana, Cuba. Sadly, he spent this time also dealing with the family tendency to motion sickness. It was during one fateful stop at the port in Boston, Massachusetts, that he met a certain young woman named Doris Destremps who was touring his carrier with a friend. They hit it off and went out a time or two but decided to go their separate ways... that is, until a chance meeting while passing on the street one day. Then it was wedding bells and heading south to Key West where he was stationed. They welcomed their first daughter there, whose name was inspired by a boat, the Cheryle Anne.

When he separated from the navy in 1957, Gary enrolled at Texas A&M earning a degree in electrical engineering and welcoming three more children, Valerie, Linda and Steven.

The fifth and final child, Catherine, came along once they had settled into their longtime home in Florissant. Gary spent most of his career working at McDonnell-Douglas (later Boeing) on electrical flight systems. Notably he worked on the F-15 and the AV-8B Harrier. He was especially proud of a test protocol he designed that would alert for a failure in the flight system and pinpoint the error. He loved his job and continued working as a consultant long after his official retirement.

Gary loved and cherished every one of his children and grandchildren. He was an involved father who read to the little ones, attended school functions, coached basketball and soccer, and joined Y Guides. He helped with homework and instilled a love of reading. In later years he took to telling each child they were his favorite - his favorite first, second, third, fourth daughter, or son.

Fearless when it came to learning how to fix or make something, Gary kept the cars running and did every kind of handyman work to keep his houses up. If he didn't know how to do something, he'd ask around and figure it out. He built a garage, finished four basements, built decks on two houses and everything in between. He was always available to help anyone who asked, selflessly giving his time and support.

Gary loved trips to Florida. He and Doris had a condo at Panama City Beach where they went to get away a couple of times each year. They spent happy hours exploring the area and walking along the beach. More recently, they took excursions to Pere Marquette Park, enjoying the scenic drive and stopping for a meal at the lodge or at the Finn Inn where they could look at the colorful aquariums.

Gary's smile lit up his whole face and shone from his eyes. When he looked at a person that smile would break across his face and say, "Oh! It's you! I'm so happy to see you." He shared that smile even in his final days and that's how he'd want us to remember him. He said several times that it made him sorrowful to think that people would be hurting when he was gone and he wished there was a way to keep that from happening. So, for him, remember the love and the good times; remember those smiles

Visitation Saturday, March 11, 2023, 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Baue Funeral Home Cave Springs, 3950 W Clay St, St Charles, MO 63301

Funeral Mass, Monday, March 13, 2023, 10:00 a.m.

St Peter Catholic Church, 221 1 Capital Dr, St Charles, MO 63301

Interment, St Peter Cemetery, 8th and MacDonough Streets, St Charles, MO 63301

In lieu of flowers donations to: The Alzheimer's Association or your favorite pet charity.

Suggestions: CARESTL, Second Chance Ranch and Tenth Life Cat Rescue.

Alzheimer's Association: https://www.alz.org/

CARESTL: https://www.icarestl.org/

Second Chance Ranch: https://secondchanceranchstl.org/

Tenth Life Cat Rescue: https://www.tenthlifecats.org/about-us

Baue Funeral Homes is currently following CDC recommendations regarding mask and social distancing policies.