Gary S. Summers

July 24, 1950 - July 1, 2011

Gary Stuart Summers, 60, of Kansas City, Mo., died suddenly on July 1, 2011, deeply immersed in a design and build project - a labor of love for his extended family. Gary was born in Kansas City, Mo., on July 24, 1950, to Barney Summers and the late Alberta Jean Solomon Summers. He attended Shawnee Mission East, played football and the trombone, attended Beth Shalom and was an Eagle Scout. Gary graduated from Kansas University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and studied business at Northeastern University. He began his career with Fairbanks Morse Pumps in Kansas City. He then moved to the Boston area where he held Defense Top Secret clearance as designer of fluid handling systems for Warren Pump Co. At Damon Corporation in Boston, Gary contributed to pioneering work in biotech research and development of a computer controlled centrifuge. Gary was most happy in his engineering career as an early proponent of customer centric design. After researching energy consumption and efficiency with Arthur D. Little in Cambridge, Gary found his way back to his beloved Kansas City and settled in Brookside where he lived for 25 years. He shifted his focus to another passion, joining the family business of 75 years. He relished the opportunity to work side by side with his grandfather, father and brothers at The Fish Market/MO Fish Company. Gary thrived on the retail customer relationship and the re- engineering of the food process and equipment design. As Gary and his wife Debora began their family, he became consumed in the care and nurturing of his children - his most proud accomplishment. Emily (now of Chicago) and Evan (in college in MN) became his focus and were nurtured, fed, coached, tutored and taught to laugh. As they grew older, he sat on the sidelines (mostly) of countless games of KCMO 3&2 baseball and basketball as well as swim meets with Emily from elementary school through college. Gary worked tirelessly in community development and sustainability, advocating with community groups in projects such as the redevelopment of the Troost Corridor. Gary was appointed to a Citizen Task Force for public transit planning, and then consulted on the light rail and BRT projects with KCATA. Most recently, Gary volunteered in the KCMSD repurposing initiative. Gary spent countless hours on design and build projects for his home and the homes of extended family he so loved and cared for, where he very tactically applied affordable, sustainable ideas. Gary is also survived by his loving father, Barney Summers and his brothers, Jeffrey and David, all of Overland Park, KS, and his sister, Cynthia Feldman of Dallas. Locally, he is also survived by his uncles, Charlie Summers of Kansas City and Mel Solomon of Brookside. He will always be 'Uncle Gary' to 9 nieces, 7 nephews and 1 great niece. He will be dearly missed by his mother-in-law, Dolores Kliethermes of Kansas City and an extended family of brother and sisters-in-law who admired and loved him. A memorial service honoring Gary will be held on Tuesday, July 5, at 2 p.m. at Congregation B'nai Jehudah (12320 Nall Avenue, OPKS), followed by interment at Rose Hill Cemetery (6900 Troost, Kansas City, Mo.). Family suggests contributions to Bridging the Gap-- http://www.bridgingthegap.org/index.php. To make a contribution in Gary's name, please contact Kristin Riott at 816-561-1061, ext. 106 or [email protected] for more details. Arrangements at www.louismemorialchapel.com where condolences and memories may be left.