Dayton Chronicle - Your Hometown News Source

Gary Louis Heinrich, Jr.

December 22, 1955–March 24, 2024

Gary Louis Heinrich, Jr., formerly of Dayton, Wash., passed away early Sunday morning, March 24, 2024 in his home in Cheney, Wash., at the age of 68.

Gary was born December 22, 1955 in Dayton, Wash., to Gary, Sr., and MaryAnn Basil Heinrich. He grew up in Dayton along with his younger sister, Charlotte, and his younger brother, Jeff. Gary was an intelligent child who liked working with anything mechanical. Gary had an affinity for anything fast whether it was cars, motorcycles, or dirt bikes. He graduated from Dayton High School in 1974. Right after high school Gary and his best friend, Mike Reinland, went to Portland, Ore., with an idea of landing a job on the Alaskan pipeline. When that didn't pan out, they enlisted in the U.S. Navy. There Gary discovered during basic training that a medical condition was going to preclude his eligibility in the service.

Gary became an Electrician's Apprentice in 1979 and never looked back. He worked as an electrician his entire life and enjoyed it very much. He especially enjoyed a job in the mountains of Nevada working on "top secret" projects for the U.S. Government. Gary had a wide variety of jobs in his years as a proud Journeyman. He had some wild times and made some lifelong friends along the way. Gary loved to recall stories from some of his more wild and crazy days past.

Gary married Connie Lee Maxwell, a girl he dated in high school, 15 years later, on September 26, 1990. Connie travelled with Gary to many different job sites and cities in the early years. Once their kids were old enough to start school it was time to settle down, and they chose Spokane, Wash., as the place to be in 1995. Gary was a member of the IBEW Local 73 union for electricians and kept busy working in construction projects, on dams, and later in the medical field doing anything electrical.

He loved to spend time in the mountains or on dirt bikes. He also liked to help his dad on the family farm near Dayton; a chore that the whole family got behind. The kids remember spending many summer months at the family farm. Gary enjoyed a wide variety of hobbies and interests and enjoyed sharing those with his children. They would enjoy things from shooting practice, to riding dirt bikes, to watching the latest Toonami episodes together. The family has many fond memories of times spent in their pool during the hot summer months; Gary loved to tinker on the pool filter and keep it all clean.

He was a proud father who liked to teach his children how to be self-sufficient. He taught them everything they needed to know from how to sew, to how to change out an electrical outlet, to how to change out your own car radiator.

The family moved to Cheney in 2017 and it was in 2020 when kidney failure forced Gary to think about retiring. Retirement turned out to be great as he got to spend more time with his beloved dogs. Gary would sit for hours shooting tennis balls for the dogs. It's hard to say who had a better time with it, him or the dogs. The dogs knew he always had a "milk bone" in his pocket for them and they loved him right back. Gary loved to play guitar. He enjoyed shooting and target practice, a passion he treasured with his family, and was proud to do his own bullet reloading.

Gary was preceded in death by his parents and by his sister, Charlotte.

-Submitted photo

Gary Louis Heinrich, Jr.

He is survived by his wife Connie at their home in Cheney; son Gary Louis Heinrich, III, Cheney, and his daughter, Josie Heinrich in Spokane; he also leaves behind two step-children; Morgan Goff Brannam and Justin Goff both of Walla Walla, Wash; three grandchildren; and his brother, Jeff Heinrich in Dayton. The family suggests memorial gifts be made to any local humane society in Gary's memory. On-line guest book is at http://www.corbeillfuneralhomes.com

Funeral Services will be in the chapel of the Corbeill Funeral Home in Dayton, Wash., Monday, April 1, at 1 p.m. Burial will follow in the Dayton Cemetery. Viewing for those who wish will be held Monday morning from 10 a.m. to service time.

Corbeill Funeral Home in Dayton is caring for the family.