Gary Allison

On September 23, 2022, we lost Gary Allison—loving husband, father, friend, and mentor. After a prolonged and courageous battle with the complications of an auto-immune ailment, he passed comfortably while at his home in St. George, Utah.

Born in 1941, Gary grew up in Madera, CA, where he developed a life-long love of outdoor sports, lakes and mountains, hunting, and anything with a large engine. He admired the adventurous mountain men and women who blazed trails in the American West and endeavored to blaze trails of his own. Imbued with the grit of west Texas transplants, he became the first member of the Allison family to graduate from college—earning undergraduate and graduate engineering degrees from UCLA and the University of Southern California, respectively.

Freshly graduated, married, and employed by IBM, Gary and his wife, Shirley, moved to Boulder, CO in 1965. He worked at the new, still incomplete, IBM Boulder facility that was the beginning of the vibrant high-tech industry in Colorado. They lived in Colorado for the better part of 50 years, raising their two sons (Brian and Tim) and passing on their love of skiing (water and snow), camping, exploring, and large gatherings of family and friends. In 2014, Gary and Shirley moved to St George, Utah for the warmer climate, golf, and proximity to Lake Powell and family; the bonus of moving to St George for Gary was the ever-present, high powered off-road vehicles.

Gary’s work ethic, intellectual curiosity, and love of people served him well in his career, as a technology innovator, including the development and installation of the data storage requirements for United Airlines’ first automated reservation system, as a senior executive at numerous public companies (Jacobs Engineering, Seagate) and as the founder of technology start ups such as Breece Hill and Chaparral Network Storage in Boulder, CO.

One of Gary’s unique characteristics was his desire and ability to have a genuine conversation with anyone. His many interests—including being a certified twin engine pilot and Jeep and boat expert, along with board-level strategy, western history, and the nuances of vodka tonics—led to deep friendships with people from all walks of life across the world.

While we miss Gary tremendously, we also know he is now exploring to his heart’s content. Gary was predeceased by his son (Tim) and parents (Bernie and Mary). He is survived by his wife, Shirley, of 59 years, sister, Kay (Claude), brother Keith (Jackie), son Brian (Kathryn), and grandchildren Robbie, Jack, and Meskele. He is also missed by many cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.