Warren Louis (W.L.) Gray passed away quietly at his home in Kyle, TX on June 28, 2026 at the age of 91.
W.L., or "Dub," as many called him, was born on a farm near Lamesa, TX, on May 17, 1935, to Earl and Amelia (Minnie) Gray. When he was still in grade school, his family moved to a farm near Artesia, NM, where he attended junior high at Cottonwood Jr. High and high school at Artesia High School (AHS), graduating in 1953. Dub was a star athlete on the basketball and track teams, a Boys State representative, and the AHS student body president his senior year. He often said the first time he saw the world was when he took a train to Chicago from Artesia, by himself, to represent his school at a national student government convention when he was just 17 years old. That began what would be a lifetime of travel and adventure.
Dub married his high school sweetheart, Dewana Lou Berry, one week after her graduation in 1955. They spent almost 70 years together until her passing on April 9, 2024. They raised their three children in Artesia and ran several small businesses together over the years. His many endeavors in business included oilfield construction, oilfield rentals, farm irrigation systems, a restaurant, and real estate, as well as farming and ranching. He often said he never went to college, but he did study at the school of hard knocks. After he retired, he and Dewana built a beautiful mountain cabin near Mayhill, NM, where they lived for several years before moving to Sun City in Georgetown, TX to be closer to their children and grandchildren. In 2020, they moved into the Austin area to be near their daughters.
In addition to being an entrepreneur, a farmer, and a rancher, Dub was an avid outdoorsman. For years, vacation in the Gray household meant driving to Colorado each summer to go trout fishing. They say there are many seasons in our lives — in Dub's case, that included dove season, quail season, pheasant season, and deer season. The only thing he liked better than hunting was fly fishing. He fly-fished all over the world, from Alaska to Russia to Argentina to New Zealand and everywhere in between. Teaching his son and grandsons to hunt and fish was one of the great joys of his life. His other great joy was his dogs. Whether it was his hunting dogs in his earlier years or his companions in his later years, Dub always loved his dogs. In fact, his little dog Missy was at his side when he passed away.
Dub and Dewana — "Grandmother and PaPa" to their grandkids — loved their seven grandchildren and loved to entertain them. For years, they held an annual summer camp for their grandkids at their mountain home in New Mexico called "Camp PaPa" that rivaled any full-fledged summer camp experience a kid could have. Camp PaPa always culminated in a presentation of skits and songs when the parents came to pick the kids up, and PaPa was often in costume, right in the middle of the action. He will always be remembered for his sense of humor. Always quick with a one-liner, he was never at a loss for words. While he loved to tell stories, he was prone to a bit of exaggeration — if you ever questioned his facts, he was quick to admit that he never liked to "let the truth get in the way of a good story." He was full of what his family called "PaPa-isms." Old West Texas sayings came out of his mouth at every turn. A few of his favorites were "meaner than a one-eyed snake," "hotter than nine kinds of doo-dads," "slicker than snot on a brass doorknob," and many more that probably shouldn't appear in print. He was truly one of a kind.
He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Dewana Gray; his parents, Earl and Minnie Gray; his brothers, Wayne and Cecile Gray; and his sister, Lucille Mauldin.
He is survived by daughter and son-in-law Alicia (Key) and Mark Ellison of Dripping Springs, TX; son and daughter-in-law Steve and Debbie Gray of Frisco, TX; and daughter Nancy Gray of Atlanta, GA. He is also survived by his grandchildren: Tyler Key of Buda, TX; Sara Key of Dripping Springs, TX; Stephanie Capshaw of Prosper, TX; Jessica Grijalva of Denver, CO; James Gray of Houston, TX; Christian Kneupper of Austin, TX; and Nicholas Kneupper of Boston, MA — along with 11 great-grandchildren. He also leaves behind one sister, Nelda Gray, and many nieces and nephews.
A private memorial service will be held at the family ranch. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in Warren's memory to the BrightFocus Foundation for macular degeneration research at www.brightfocus.org/macular/macular-degeneration-research.