Harold William Grusing

Harold William Grusing, of Billings, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family, at St. Vincent Hospital, on Saturday, March 7, 2015, after a hard-fought battle with pneumonia. Harold was born in Lakin, Kan., on Oct. 8, 1937, to Louis and Mildred Grusing. He had three children from an early marriage: Doug, Kevin and Steve. He met the love of his life, Laurie, in 1975, and they married after a whirlwind three-month engagement. Along with a new wife, he gained two children as well: Chris and Lisa Marie. Harold was a hard-working man who provided well for his family of seven. He was a dedicated father who loved attending all of his children's sporting events, no matter how far he had to drive to watch and support them. He was a Bureau of Land Management surveyor, where, throughout his career, he made many lifelong friends. Our house was a natural gathering place for the annual BLM picnics, as we had a large yard for a multitude of games, a pool table and a bar downstairs with enough room for everyone. Many memories were made at those picnics that will never be forgotten. He loved to play horseshoes, pinochle, cribbage and any other card or board game you would introduce him to. He loved Bud Light, especially from Applebee's, where it was necessary to get "a big, tall, cold Bud Light." He loved to spend time with his family, to have family dinners at his daughter Lisa's house, and even started a new Christmas tradition after Laurie passed away where the entire family would go to the Windmill together. He loved animals of every kind, but cats were definitely his favorite. He had many over the years, but Tom and Ma were his two favorites, and he was devastated when they died. Above all, his grandchildren were the light of his life. When his family looked through pictures for his Celebration of Life, hardly a picture could be found without one or two grandchildren in his arms. He loved hugs, to say "I love you" and wanted to help out in any way he could. In April of 2014, Harold decided to move to Autumn Springs, an assisted living facility on the west end of Billings. He found not only a new home there, but many good friends. Much to our surprise, he became a fill-in for the activities director when she was unavailable and would call bingo and read the news in the morning. This is not the Dad we knew growing up, so it was nice to see him come out of his shell. Special thanks to Doris and all of the staff at Autumn Springs who loved him as one of their own. We were so blessed to have the amazing nurses, CNAs and doctors that cared for him so lovingly. Special thanks to Dr. Saunders, Dr. Byron, and especially Brooke and Macy, who were his nurses his last two days with us. Your skills, compassion, support and love were visible to all, and we thank you for helping us make hard decisions. He touched many people during his time here and he will be greatly missed. He would often refer to Laurie as "My little Laurie" and, although we mourn the loss of future memories and time with such a wonderful man, we celebrate that he is together again with his beloved wife. Harold was preceded in death by his parents, wife Laurie, and son Kevin. He is survived by his children: son Doug (Kathy) Grusing; daughter-in-law Lori; son Steve (Jill) Grusing; son Chris (Cherie) Shigley; and daughter Lisa Marie (Bill) and brother Bob (Mary). He is also survived by nine grandchildren: Michael, Kody, Sydney, Josh, Hannah, Jordyn, Emma, Max and Ian, as well as a great-grandson, Kaiden. He also leaves behind many special friends and relatives. A chapel service will be at 11 a.m. Monday, March 30, at Michelotti-Sawyers Mortuary, 1001 Alderson Ave., Billings. A Celebration of Life will follow at the Elks Lodge on 934 Lewis, complete with a keg of Bud Light so everyone can have one in honor of Dad.