Francis Clifford "Cliff" Gray

Francis Clifford “Cliff” Gray, 93, of New Philadelphia, left this world on July 30, 2020, to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ the Son of God in Heaven.

Born on April 1, 1927, in Stillwater, he was the son of the late James A. and Bonnie Copeland Gray. Cliff graduated from Stone Creek High School in 1945, and was inducted into the U.S. Army. He served honorably with the 47th Machine Records Unit in the European Theatre of Operations during the Second World War as a Technician 5th Grade. Cliff was honorably discharged on December 4, 1946 as a Corporal-Technician. He was awarded the WWII Victory Ribbon and an Army Occupation Medal. Cliff married Mildred L. Burns on August 12, 1950. The couple would have celebrated 70 years of marriage on August 12th. Cliff had a great time raising his three children and the family often took trips to historical sites. He retired from Allstate Insurance as a claims adjustor. Prior to that, he was body shop foreman for the former Humphries Auto in New Philadelphia. Additionally, he had operated his own automotive body shop, The Deluxe Body Shop, in Dover. Cliff enjoyed wood-working, designing projects and seeing them through to completion, traveling, remodeling, spending time with his beloved grandchildren, researching genealogy, and studying his Bible. More recently, he took on the challenge of completing jigsaw puzzles and making picture frames; he also wrote and cared for his beloved wife Mildred.

Cliff was a faithful follower of Jesus Christ and a member of the Dover Alliance Church, where he served as a Sunday School Superintendent and Sunday School teacher, Head Usher, on the board of elders, and Boys Brigade Leader. He was also a member of the Genealogical and Historical Society.

Cliff will be dearly missed by his beloved wife, Mildred; his children, Cheryl (Ricardo) Ramos and Shawn Gray, both of New Philadelphia, and Kevin Gray of Monticello, Florida; his grandchildren, Rachael (Brett) Hartsell of Indianapolis and Drew Ramos of New Philadelphia; great-grandson, Mathias Grayson Hartsell of Indianapolis; his sister-in-law, Barbara Gray (wife of Marcellus); and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his two brothers, George and Marcellus Gray; his sister and brother-in-law, Yvonne and Delbert Sweebe.

Family and friends are invited to call at the Toland-Herzig Funeral Home in Dover, on Sunday, August 9th, 2 - 4 p.m. A funeral service will be held Monday, August 10th, at 11 a.m., in the funeral home; Pastor Richard G. Rose will officiate. Burial will be in Dover Burial Park where military honors will be conducted. To sign an online guestbook and share a fond memory of Cliff, please visit the Obituaries link on the Toland-Herzig website.

Donations in Cliff’s memory may be made to Samaritan’s Purse, Operation Heal Our Patriots, P.O. Box 3000, Boone, North Carolina 28607.