Gary Arnold Knabe

Mass of Christian Burial for Gary Arnold Knabe will be held at 10:00 AM on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Burial to follow at Sacred Heart Cemetery. Rosary and Vigil will be held at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, February 28, 2023 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Gary passed away on Saturday, February 25, 2023. Gary was born on March 30 1959 to Arnold and Aileen (Koelzer) Knabe. Gary was the first son and was welcomed into the family by older sisters Janet and Carol. They Were joined by Lori, Margie, and Darrell. He was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church his whole life, except when he was living at the lake Texoma where he was a member of St Patrick in Denison. Gary graduated from Sacred Heart Catholic School in 1977. Like all the guys from Muenster he took a job in the oil field, working for Norman’s well service. But the life on the farm drew Gary back home, and he partnered with his father in the dairy farm. One of the things on the dairy Gary was most known for was climbing the silo using arms only. The man was strong as an ox, so he and his lifelong friend Paul Becker and classmate Billy Felderhoff decided to enter the tug of war at Germanfest. They won of course but ask Billy how much pain was involved. Gary started dating Pam, over a decade later, he came to Pam and said, “let’s go buy that ring”. As we all know, Pam hyperventilated. On March 23, 1996 they were married in Sacred Heart Church. Even though Gary had been around Chris, Jeff, and Vince since they were young, now his sons --- he loved them dearly. One day, Jeff had big news for the Knabe family, they were having a baby boy and they named him after Gary. Grandpa was so thrilled; the smile on his face was from ear to ear when he told his best friend, Sam Hess. The family grew more when Vince and Debra had granddaughters Hayden and Avery. Dairies were selling out all over the county and Gary finally gave in and sold out too. He bought some cows and became a cattleman. In 2008, he hit the jackpot when they wanted to put Wind turbines on his and Pam’s farm. You see, Gary had asthma and had been on medicine for most of his life. Now, he could get off the allergy and asthma meds and not farm anymore. They then bought a house on Lake Texoma and moved there. They lived there 9 years while renting out the farmhouse. When the renters moved out of the farmhouse, Gary and Pam moved back to the farm. They lived in the tiny house behind the main house while they remodeled the main house. New floors, new paint, and adding central heat and air. Why do I talk about all these repairs? Because during this time Gary realized he was needed at home and wanted to spend more time with his mother and grandkids. One evening Gary told Pam “I feel I need to move back home to be with my family. I love them, and we need to move back home and be with them”. Gary and Pam were happy to be back because they realized how much they had been missing out with their family. Gary was a quiet man but always had a knack for picking out the best gifts. The boys remember coming home one Christmas to a trampoline in the yard and how Gary would make them fly up in the air on it, often ending up with one of them getting hurt. Most of you are aware that though gentle Gary had a knack of breaking something. gentle of heart but not so prone to safety, in other words like a bull in a China factory. Vince remembers getting a small pair of milk boots when he was younger full of coins and a note saying there is more money for you when you start milking the cows. Gary had a saying; a man is judged by how he takes care of his family. He truly loved his mother and siblings helping Carol building raised garden beds, Lori around her house, Chris, Jeff, and Vince move, yes something always got broken. He was always willing to help the boys, many times going to pick up Chris when his vehicle broke down. Someone remembered when he and Lori gathered bee nests to light them on fire, but a skunk found them and ate them first. His nephew Toby talked about when he was young, he was not allowed to ride on the open cab tractor and his mother Margie caught him with Gary on one. Gary loved playing with the grand kids. He and little Gary and Pam played monopoly. I’ve been told Gary owned Boardwalk every time and bragged about his gaming skills winning all the time. Part of Gary and Pam’s farm has some timber along the creek, the granddaughters named it the Adventure Forest. Grandpa even carved faces on the trees. They would spend hours walking the creek and playing tik-tok, which was Gary grabbing them by the ankles and swinging them like a pendulum. Grandpa also built them a playhouse in their yard. Gary was a quiet man but was well known to hide something, most of the time made of aluminum, in whoever home was hosting the party. Most of y’all remember when they finished ninth street between main and mesquite. Gary and Sam were riding around late, or should I say, early one morning and Gary said that Sam couldn’t make it to the other end. Well---Gary was right. There was also freezing rain at the time. Being the good friend Gary was, they walked back up to the ranch on main street to get Gary’s pickup and went out to the dairy and drove the tractor back to pull Sam’s truck out. All said and done, Gary got home in time to start milking. Another time Gary, Pam, Cindy, and Sam went to the Myra BBQ and came back to docs for a bit after. Gary and Pam left a little before Sam and Cindy. They walked out in time to see Gary making silly hand gestures and yelling something at them while he was backing up. Well—the smile and silliness stopped when he backed into the fire hydrant. They don’t know how it didn’t shear it off. They were all fully expecting to see a water geyser. Gary is Survived by his wife Pam, sons Chris, Jeff, Vince and wife Debra, grandchildren Gary, Hayden, and Avery, his mother Aileen, his sister Janet Felderhoff and husband Ross, his sister Carol Sicking, his sister Lori Grewing, brother-in-law Damian Walterscheid and wife Grace and many Nieces and Nephews. He was preceded in death by His Father Arnold, His sister Margie Walterscheid, brother Darrell, niece Amy Hilton, and nephew Jody Felderhoff.

Gary Arnold Knabe

March 30, 1959 - February 25, 2023