Gary Conrad Koontz

Gary was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on February 24, 1936. He graduated from West High School in Columbus, Ohio (1954), where he was voted “The Wittiest,” followed by The Ohio State University (1958), earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration and participating in the ROTC program. Gary was a proud, lifelong Buckeye who loved all things scarlet and gray.

He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserves in 1958. He served in the Ohio National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserves in Michigan, earning a Meritorious Service Medal in 1979 as a major. Gary worked for over 40 years in the insurance industry, starting as an underwriter and advancing to positions in upper management. He worked for various companies, including a long tenure at Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company in Columbus, Ohio, before retiring in 2007 to begin his second, beloved career as a school bus driver for First Student in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, where he enjoyed driving students until 2018. Gary loved his students, and they loved him.

Gary and his wife, Patricia, recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. He loved spending time with his family, especially family vacations on the beaches of Lake Huron in Oscoda, Michigan, and the Jersey Shore. He will be remembered for his kind, joyful heart, his creative and one-of-a-kind sense of humor, and devotion to his children and numerous grandchildren. He loved spending time waving to the neighbors, indulging in ice cream, singing army songs, and spoiling his family.

Remaining to cherish Gary’s memory are his wife, Patricia Koontz; children Tracy Koontz (Julie), Sherry Tracey (David), and Tiffany McFadden (John); sister, Dixie Bartkus, and her son, Gregory; 9 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and 1 great-great-grandson. He is preceded in death by his mother, Martha Bell Clark (Billie); father, Leonell Allen Koontz (Jack Lee); and granddaughter Karen Elizabeth Koontz.

Visitation will be held on October 5 at 11 a.m. at Schimunek Funeral Home in Bel Air, Maryland (610 West MacPhail Road, Bel Air, Maryland 21014). A service will begin at 12 noon. Before moving to Maryland in 2021, Gary and Patricia resided in North Wales, Pennsylvania, for 27 years. An additional visitation will be held at the North Penn VFW Hall in Glenside, Pennsylvania, on October 6 at 2 p.m. with a service following at 3 p.m. (2519 Jenkintown Road Glenside, Pennsylvania 19038).

In lieu of flowers, donations in Gary’s memory may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or Sandy Hook Promise.

https://www.stjude.org/donate

https://www.sandyhookpromise.org/take-action/ways-to-give