He served his Wayne County community for years as a volunteer firefighter. Now, residents have paid their respects to the Gray family following the tragic highway crash that took Donald Gray’s life last week.
Gray was laid to rest on Monday in a family cemetery that overlooks Bear Creek. He was given his last ride on his favorite fire engine along a route that started at Church of God Park East to his final resting place on his beloved farm. Along the route, people could be seen standing along the shoulder of the road holding American Flags as fire engines and EMS units sat quietly at all of the intersections along the way.
Gray was well-known as a local farmer and as a firefighter and former chief with the New Hope Fire Department. He perished last week Thursday when his vehicle was struck from behind by a tractor-trailer on the U.S. 70 Bypass near the Wayne-Lenoir County Line. Gray was just starting his farming day by driving behind a piece of his farm equipment as it travelled down the highway. That’s when the fatal crash occurred.
