In Loving Memory of

Hardy A. Gregory

February 15, 1929 - November 28, 2023

Hardy Anderson Gregory passed away on November 28, 2023 at the age of 94. He was an exceptional man. He was born 3rd in a family of 4 boys. He loved his brothers and his parents with all his heart. He fell in love with a beautiful Southern Belle named Bettye Sue and he married her shortly after returning from service during the Korean War. They had 7 children: Michelle Gachis (Gary), Rebecca Gregory, Melanie Cole (Mark), Yvette Evans (Gary) and Jennifer Landaker Stone (William). Hardy is preceded in death by a son, Phillip Gregory, a daughter, Cynthia Gregory, a granddaughter, Amber Gregory, and a great grandson, Michael Heller.  Hardy & Bettye had 8 grandchildren including: Ashley Heller (Jeremy), Nicholas Landaker (Allyson), Thomas Gachis, Alexis Poncy (Jon), Dakota Vaughan (Jeff), Zachary Landaker and Sterling Quinton (Frida). They had 4 great grandchildren including: Peyton Heller, Mia Heller and Weston Poncy. They had many nieces and nephews that they loved like their very own. Hardy and Bettye were truly "Lucky in Love".

Hardy was intelligent, wise, kind, generous, funny, hard working, creative, musical and a man of great faith! He was raised in a God-loving musical family where he learned to play the guitar. He could instantaneously play any song you could hum even if he didn't know it! It was quite a gift! A normal evening in the Gregory household involved Hardy pulling out his guitar (or ukulele) and the whole family joining in to sing and harmonize with him.

Hardy was born in Fulton, Itawamba County, Mississippi during the Great Depression and his family experienced hard times. To survive, he and his family worked as share croppers. They also fished and hunted to keep food on the table. He loved learning and he was advanced a grade in school. He was accepted at Mississippi State University but his family had moved to Benicia, California so he decided to stay with his family in the golden state. He graduated from Benicia High School and then went to work at the Benicia Arsenal as a supervisor in the Supply Department. He was then drafted in to the army to serve in the Korean War. Before he left the shore, he was given an IQ test administered by the army. Next, he was assigned to a military ship that was heading across the Pacific Ocean to the front lines of the war.  His ship encountered a severe storm. Many soldiers got sick on the ship but Hardy was fine. His older brothers, Billy and Eddie, had served in the military and had returned home safely. His mom, Ethel, and her mom, Pearl, were concerned that Hardy would be the family's sacrificial lamb so they both prayed to the good Lord to spare him. After a rocky and treacherous few nights at sea, 6 soldiers were pulled off the ship in Hawaii and Hardy was one of the 6. The army officers told him that he scored high on their IQ test. Yes, he was smart but we give all glory to the good Lord and the power of prayer!

In Hawaii, Hardy was assigned to Schofield Barracks on the island of Oahu. While stationed there, he learned to play golf and learned to play the ukulele. Before he left Schofield Barracks, his last assignment was to "white wash (paint) the Mess Hall" because a movie was scheduled to be filmed there. The movie turned out to be "From Here to Eternity".

After an honorable discharge from the army, Hardy returned to Benicia where he dated Bettye, proposed and then they eloped. They were married in June of 1954 however, since they were eloping, the preacher thought they were pregnant so he automatically back dated their marriage certificate a month! But, their first born child "numero uno" was born 10 months after the real date they were married.

Hardy worked at Aerojet as an Engineering Assistant until he graduated with a bachelor's degree in Physics from Sacramento State University in 1961, then Aerojet promoted him to Mechanical Engineer. Next, he worked at McDonnell Douglas as a Mechanical Engineer on the design of the second stage fuel tanks for the Saturn 5/Apollo Moon Project that resulted in Neil Armstrong's famous walk on the moon. After that, he worked at Bechtel Corporation specifying pipes and values for Nuclear Power Plants. He obtained his Professional Mechanical Engineer's license and worked at Mare Island on nuclear submarines. All along, he was often hired to play music (guitar) at various pubs and restaurants.

Even though Hardy worked 2 jobs (engineer & musician) and had a large family to provide for, he made sure his children were in church on Sundays and in vacation Bible school when regular school let out for the summer.

For exercise and relaxation, he loved to golf. He was very competitive and got a hole-in-one 2 times during his lifetime.

Hardy retired in 1992. During retirement, Hardy & Bettye took 4 cruises (to the Carribean, Mexican Riviera 2x and a beautiful 11 day cruise to Alaska). They also vacationed in Hawaii (Maui & Oahu). Other nice trips and excursions included attending spring training games in Scottsdale, Arizona, Sweetheart Golf Tournaments, paddle boat rides on Lake Tahoe and a family house boat trip on Lake Oroville. Hardy and Bettye liked to camp especially in the Gold Country and Big Sur.

For Hardy, Bettye was his rock ….solid & wise. She was a beautiful lady with a smile that could light up a room. Without a doubt, Hardy loved her. He was never quite the same when she passed away in March of 2015.

A celebration of Hardy's life is planned for February 2, 2024 at The Father's House at 4800 Horse Creek Drive, Vacaville, CA 95687.