Gary P. Dudley

Born in Teaneck, New Jersey, to the late George and Marjorie (nee Klaas) Dudley, Gary was raised in West Covina, California. He met his first love, Bonnie Jo Edwards in high school and they married in 1970 and started a family. Gary was a man of faith and the early part of their married life, he was a very young minister. On a minister’s salary it became hard to provide for their growing family and he made the decision to join the United States Air Force. He proudly served his country from 1974 – 1994 and Gary and his family was stationed in places such as Japan, Germany, Maryland, Alaska and lastly and his most beloved, Texas. He retired in 1994 and San Antonio has been his home since.

Gary’s thirst for knowledge was unquenchable, and there were few things that made him more happy, than to share this knowledge with an audience. With that, he found himself being a teacher of American History at St. Frances Academy until 2010. He engaged his students in lessons, enjoyed more than one debate with them and truly made them see their own potential. That was the kind of teacher we wish we all had. One other subject that more than peaked Gary’s interest was genealogy. He traced family history back to the time of lords and ladies and became an accomplished author with book titles such as Legend of Dudleytown, CT.

Through all of this, Gary’s faith was tested more than once with the death of his first love, Bonnie Jo in 1999 and the death of his youngest son, Shawn in 2003. As a minister with St. Alban’s Church, sharing his faith and love of the Word of our Lord was still forefront in his mind. He was also an active mason. He was an active member and Past Master of Valley-Hi Masonic Lodge, a past presiding officer of both Helotes York Rite bodies (Chapter and Council) and Past Commander of San Marcos Commandery, Order of Knights of Templar.

When least expected, Gary met the second love of his life, Lillie Rene Brady. They met in June of 2002, and they haven’t looked back since. They celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary on July 9th and filled those years with many adventures. They shared their love of cruising with all of their family and those memories will be treasured for a lifetime.

An honest and true gentleman, Gary will also be remembered for his kind and generous heart, his quirky and joking manner and most of all for the devotion to his family. Nothing made him more proud than to brag about or to spend time with his loved ones, especially his “8 and great.” He enjoyed his Sci Fi shows, especially Star Trek, showing off his talents on the guitar and decorating his home for Christmas, trying to take first place in the neighborhood. He lived to the fullest while he could and will be missed deeply by those who knew and loved him.

Beloved husband of 20 years to Lillie Rene (nee Brady) and the late Bonnie Jo (nee Edwards); loving father of Gary C. (Stephanie) Dudley, Christina M. Dudley, Carrie A. Obenhaus, Christopher Marlow, Paul B. (Angela) Marlow and the late Shawn M. Dudley; cherished Poppy and Grandpa of Sage Dudley, Kyle Dudley, Alexander (Jaela) Dudley, Kayla Dudley, Robert, Ava, Jake, Gracie and Great Grandpa (he loved being called great anything) to Maverick; dear brother of the late George Dudley and Midge Sumner. Gary is also survived by his sister-in-law, Carmen Dudley, mother-in-law, Patricia Evans and many loving nieces, nephews and grand nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Gary’s name to the Michael J. Fox Foundation at www.michaeljfox.org to help in the research for Parkinson’s Disease which Gary has fought valiantly for the past few years.

The family will receive friends from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m., Tuesday, July 30, 2024, at Porter Loring Mortuary West.

SERVICETUESDAY, JULY 30, 20245:00 PMPORTER LORING MORTUARY WEST1710 W. LOOP 1604 N. SAN ANTONIO, TX 78251(Near SeaWorld)

BURIALFRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 202410:45 AMFORT SAM HOUSTON NATIONAL CEMETERY1520 HARRY WURZBACH RD, SAN ANTONIO, TX. 78209