Reporting in on Ian Gray Over 12 years ago, Helen was a new resident who happened to catch Ian’s eye. He wasted no time in taking her for a walk in the gully and asking her to go with him to sheep dog trials at Whitehall. He did have an ulterior motive. Helen had to jump in and out of the car to open multiple gates. Not long after Nigel arrived here, he was summoned by Ken for help. Ian had been weeding and fell in his rose garden, unable to get up. Nigel leant over the wall, plucked him up and set him on his feet on the terrace. The great hypothermic rescue was a joint affair. Helen and Ann were delivering the newspapers when they noticed that Ian’s garage door had been open for 2 hours and no sign of Ian. It was a very cold, wet morning so they did a search on the golf cart. Ian’s mobility scooter was located parked at the top by the gully gate. Thus began the search and rescue. The two ladies found him halfway over a bank, cast on his back, making feeble calls for help. At this stage they dragged him to safety and rang Ken and Sal to bring his scooter down to the bottom of the gully where they were. After helping him onto his scooter he shot off up the hill leaving us all behind. Cold and wet we staggered back up the hill to find Ian was in the shower trying to stave off hypothermia. Ken had to keep checking on him to ensure survival. But you can’t kill weeds as they saying goes! A few days later he brought his “Guardian Angels” freshly baked muffins for saving him.

Tamahere Eventide Village Neighbours ‘Search & Rescue’ Team Reporting in on Ian Gray Over 12 years ago, Helen was a new resident who happened to catch Ian’s eye. He wasted no time in taking her for a walk in the gully and asking her to go with him to sheep dog trials at Whitehall. He did have an ulterior motive. Helen had to jump in and out of the car to open multiple gates. Not long after Nigel arrived here, he was summoned by Ken for help. Ian had been weeding and fell in his rose garden, unable to get up. Nigel leant over the wall, plucked him up and set him on his feet on the terrace. The great hypothermic rescue was a joint affair. Helen and Ann were delivering the newspapers when they noticed that Ian’s garage door had been open for 2 hours and no sign of Ian. It was a very cold, wet morning so they did a search on the golf cart. Ian’s mobility scooter was located parked at the top by the gully gate. Thus began the search and rescue. The two ladies found him halfway over a bank, cast on his back, making feeble calls for help. At this stage they dragged him to safety and rang Ken and Sal to bring his scooter down to the bottom of the gully where they were. After helping him onto his scooter he shot off up the hill leaving us all behind. Cold and wet we staggered back up the hill to find Ian was in the shower trying to stave off hypothermia. Ken had to keep checking on him to ensure survival. But you can’t kill weeds as they saying goes! A few days later he brought his “Guardian Angels” freshly baked muffins for saving him.

continued.... Ken and Sal were his neighbours for seven years thoroughly enjoying his company, sense of humour and listening to tales of times gone by. Ken was often called on to perform 1 st Aid treatment under instructions from Ian. When you get old skin gets thin and peels easily. Rescuing became a regular occurrence. Another request involved taking him out to Whitehall farm to round up sheep with Rose and Joy after he lost his licence. Ken took him in Ian’s car, not his own pristine machine. During his dog trialling days Ian was constantly changing his car. From there he progressed to 3-wheel trikes – low hung of course, didn’t want to look like a preschooler! The trike also came in for frequent upgrades until the electric model tipped him off. Mobility scooters were also in the mix and a fascination when he didn’t have a car. Again, this was changed regularly - whether for speed or show we did not know. We attended Ian’s 100 th birthday. Quite an achievement for one who pushed the physical boundaries. Then came the day when Ian had to go into care. He had trialled this once before and after one night, summoned Miss Daisy to bring him back. When he left for Awatere, we held our breath and got up early next morning to check if Miss Daisy had returned Ian back to villa number 49. We were very pleased when Ian settled in his last resting place on earth. And so we say, “Farewell Ian and thanks for the memories”.

A natural teacher, my husband Neil and I were always interested in Grandma and Grandpa’s projects, their enthusiasm to learn and try new things and follow them through was admirable and served his active mind well into his 90’s. I have fond memories as a kid of staying with Grandpa and Grandma in Sylvan Ave, we may have only stayed a couple of nights and only a handful of times. We learnt a lot in that brief time, and the topics weren’t the norm either! Dog agility, proper table manners, eating ox tongue, bread making, pottery, trimming of fruit trees, gardening, hand built remote control sail boats, and church on Sunday, to name a few. These experiences stick vividly in my mind and serve me to this day. Grandpa always greeted and departed me with a strong hug, and kind words. It was a privilege to be your Granddaughter, thank you. Finally at peace, go well …as you would say.

Mr Gray, You were the first “authority figure” I had ever encountered at the age of 4y and what an impression you left behind. From watching your long strides across the fields that would soon become Colwill School, to shaking your hand across the fence of our backyard when you asked if I was looking forward to meeting my new teacher soon as I watched the school classrooms emerge. I remember the early days of attending school galas, receiving certificates signed with your name and proudly wearing our grey tshirts with the heron on them. Because our house bordered the school yard, you would often say hello and ask how school or the family were going, and always took the time to wave. Thank you for being such a kind, curious and patient man, who willingly took on the challenge of a new school and for shaping our childhoods. Your legacy certainly helped to guide us far beyond those school gates, and your name will forever remain within our memories of Colwill. Much love to your family xx

Ian Gray and his sheep dogs, from Michael and Margaret Oliver . Ian has been part of our lives since he and Lesley moved to Pokeno. They became part of the sheep dog trial fraternity and were involved in administration and competition throughout the Waikato and beyond. They were popular and respected, making many new friends. When Ian moved to Eventide, he came to our farm in Whitehall with his dogs to gain experience mustering and handling sheep. His happy place was out on the hills, often bringing sheep back to the yards. Sometimes he became lost despite using maps. Maps are two dimensional and hills are not, so the gates were not always where Ian imagined they should be. He would usually have lunch or an afternoon tea at our home, a ritual that we all enjoyed. There were some moments of drama. Once this involved his vehicle careering down a steep slope and into a creek. The paddock of interest has now been named Gray's Folly. Another time, while working with Rose and Joy in a paddock near our house, Ian had a close encounter with a sheep and subsequently appeared with a 15 by 4 centimetre length of skin hanging from his wrist. He had Margaret wash the wound with saline and reattach the skin with steri-strips. The medical people left this in place and it all healed up well. With help from Maurie Hone, Ian worked tirelessly building infrastructure and helping run the Cambridge sheep dog trials, and the English Classic trial where he gained top ten placings several times. In a remarkable feat of intrepid determination, Ian at 94 years of age pedaled his battery assisted tricycle from Tamahere all the way out to Whitehall with Rose tucked in a box behind his seat. Later, with battery recharged, he pedaled back to Eventide. Margaret and I were priviledged to have been a friend of this remarkable man.

Ian, my loved elder brother It was not until I read Ian’s memoir “We travel together” that I realised he and my eldest brother Scott had been disappointed at my arrival. At the time, in 1929, just four and five years old, they were living with our parents, James and Marion, in the missionary bungalow in Jagadhri. Ian relates how our father burst into their room, excited to share the news with a question “Boys, what would you like, a puppy or a little brother?” With even more happy anticipation, Ian and Scott chorused “a puppy!” Despite their initial disappointment, I hasten to add, Scott and Ian were wonderful older brothers. I really missed them over the four years that they were at boarding school at St Andrews, Christchurch, and we, the rest of the family, were back in India. During that time, well I remember the anticipation of the arrival of the post, particularly the letters from Scott and Ian. With younger siblings, David and Patricia, we would all listen intently, as our mother read their news. Ian’s indefatigable enthusiasm and energy for learning have been a constant source of inspiration for me; his love of teaching, the sea, the land and all those projects. He has this unique ability to inspire others to join in, work together and “get on with it”. Who hasn’t enjoyed his stories of adventures? I have so many memories of his practical kindness. One that I cherish happened nearly 74 years ago. Late on the 16th December 1951, Ian drove from Auckland to Taupo and met our parents. They had just driven over the Napier Taupo Road after our father had taken a St Paul’s Napier Sunday evening service. Ian then drove them through the night to Auckland. Our father married Audrey and I at 11am on the 17th December. Thank you, Ian. Treasured memories Robert Gray (not a puppy, but so glad that eventually puppies and dogs were such a significant part of your life). Brother

Ian, my older brother, was always a born leader and a man of action—an innovator and an independent thinker. He embraced the values of discipline, honesty, and trust in everything he did. I didn’t really know Ian until I was about 10 years old. Our family had just returned to New Zealand after 20 years in India, and I was trying to fit in as a new classmate at Devonport School. I was impressed by the vocabulary of the most popular boys, so I went home and rattled off a list of their words to Ian. He promptly handed me a pair of boxing gloves and gave me a good thrashing on the front lawn. That’s when I learned they were all swear words. Our early life—like that of our siblings Scott, Robert, Patricia, were spent in the Uttar Pradesh region of India. For five months each year, we lived and learned under canvas, as our father and his Indian elders took the gospel message to the people of the farming areas. Using carbide acetylene lanterns in the evenings, they projected scenes of Jesus’ life onto sheets, sharing the gospel in one village for several weeks before moving on to the next. That nomadic life wasn’t well suited to formal education, so Scott and Ian were eventually sent to St Andrew’s College in Christchurch for five years. It was there that Ian was advised to learn boxing—to handle the “new boy” bullying that came with boarding school life. Ian and I became good mates—something he reminded me of just three days before he died. He recalled how we were on the same dishwashing team for our family duties. The Sunday roast dishes were the worst, he said. One of his greatest challenges—and proudest legacies—was setting up the first secondary school in Onesua, Vanuatu, on a previously vacant site. Today that school, and its role in a developing nation, stands as a living legacy to their work. Once again, discipline, honesty, and trust were at the heart of everything. Ian was a man of strength, vision, and deep integrity. Rest in peace, my dear brother.

We met Ian through dog agility and we both shared an interest in dogs and dog training. We bought Ian and Leslie’s property in Pokeno and that is where Ian introduced me to sheepdog trialing. As with so many of his interests Ian was a font of knowledge and advice. Ian was dedicated, innovative and kind but more than anything Ian was a gentleman.

Patricia Isaacs Fri 10 Oct, 15:17 (2 days ago) to me Ian. He holds a special place in my heart. As a little girl with 4 big brothers, Ian always made time just for me. His efforts help me feel special and gave me confidence to face life with all its ups and downs. Thank you dear boy. -Trisha

To my inspiration and my very good friend.. Dearest Ian.. thanks for the knowledge you shared with me from years gone by, from agility to Flygility to tracking to sheep dog trials.. I am happy you are now with your beloved Lesley and your beloved dogs, but I really do miss our phone calls and our visits.. Till we all meet again. Lots of love Christine 💫⭐️🌟💚💜💝💖💞