Grant Gibson Price

Grant Gibson Price of Aiken South Carolina on January 5, 2022 of Acute COVID infection exacerbating long-standing heart disease at the age of 77. Grant is survived by his Wife Lynn Price (Nee Brake), his Children Daniel, (Spouse Sarah), Nicholas, (Spouse Amy), Chadd, David, (Spouse Ashley),Michael (Spouse Jessica) Joshua (Spouse Jessie) and Christa (Spouse Jeffrey), John Abrams (Spouse Waldina) Jennifer Abrams, Garrett Penix (Spouse Leslie) as well as Dan’s children Sam, Posie, Cecilia; Nicholas’s children Dominic and Alex; Chadd’s children Ben and Matthew; David’s children, Winslow, and Hamilton; Michael’s children Espen, Gibson, Paxten; Joshua’s Children, Bailee, Jackson and Avery; Christa’s child, Mack; John’s children Brandy, Lilybeth, John III; Jennifer’s children Jessica Miller, Kailey Rose; Garrett’s children Hannah Devary, Andrew Penix, Mariah, Damyn; as well as Jessica’s children Kayden, Phoenix, Camdyn).

     Grant was a war baby–born Sept 11, 1944 in Bethesda Maryland to Richard Royer Price from Bexley, Ohio, an attorney serving in the Navy, and Harriet Price (nee Grant) from Grove City Ohio. Following the war, Grant’s family returned to Ohio where Richard began a law practice. Grant eventually had 2 younger brothers Patrick and Christopher. After Richard’s alcoholism led to him abandoning his family, Harriet began work as a librarian–a role she embraced becoming the head Children’s Librarian at the Bexley Public Library–a post she held for many years.

     After graduating from Bexley High School in 1962, Grant attended Ohio University in Athens, where he majored in business administration and met his first wife, Rebecca Dye. Following graduation they were married, and spent 3 years in Van Wert, Ohio where Grant’s first job was in insurance underwriting. He, his wife, and newborn son moved back to Bexley in 1969 where he began his first job in the career he was born for—sales. Over the next 4 decades he sold everything from securities, business forms, paper (he was the original Jim Halpert), computers, printers, fax machines, and radio ads. Though he was a natural salesman, and was proud of his profession (he was fond of saying “Nothing is done until something is sold”) he was not a born manager–and he lamented repeatedly being Peter-Principled into managing his sales peers after excelling in sales productivity in the previous year.

     Grant will be remembered for his ever-present sense of humor. (His comedic heroes included Steve Allen, Carl Reiner, Johnny Carson, Sid Caesar, Carl Reiner, Bob and Ray among many others). In his youth he was the inveterate prankster, known for leading high school classmates in synchronous alarm clock eruptions in every students’ locker during the school day, flushing all of the toilets throughout the school at once in a ill-fated attempt to recreate a recent school-canceling water main break, getting his image surreptitiously (long before photoshop) twice into the same yearbook picture of the school choir, and using a construction crane to place a car on the roof of the three story school. In later years, he was known for his quick wit, and his willingness to MC almost any event he was a part of–with a winning and hammy mischievousness. His love of humor lives on in all of his children.

     As a young man he had a motorcycle, which he sold to buy his first wife’s engagement ring, and a British sports car, which he sold to buy a more practical VW Bug when his first child came along. He also learned to fly as a young adult but gave this up as his financial responsibilities grew.

     Though not a natural athlete himself (“my mind knows what I should, do , and where I should be on the court, or field, but my body often can’t do it or get me there.”) he loved sports. He was a solid golfer, and competed on his high school team, enjoying the game during much of his adult life. He played and coached church basketball and softball for many years and coached (officially and often unofficially from the sidelines) his kids in basketball, baseball and other sports. Though he never played, he was a huge devotee of football, and exercised his love of the game cheering on (and occasionally lamenting the failings of) his beloved Buckeyes, and refereeing high school and college games for over 20 years. He always said being in the backfield as a head referee allowed him “the best seat in the house” for a game, and from that vantage point he saw some of the greatest Central Ohio players in their formative years (including the Griffin brothers, Chris Spielman, Orlando Pace, Andy Katzenmoyer). His love and knowledge of the game filtered to his family, and he was proud to know that his young granddaughter knows the difference between a linebacker and a safety, and a safety and a personal foul.

     Following the dissolution of his first marriage, he married Lynn–also a skilled salesperson. They lived happily for the rest of his life, renewing their love daily and their vows in Hawaii on one occasion. Initially, they lived in Powell, Ohio, and enjoyed a wide network of friends–particularly within the local jazz and blues scene. Over the last two decades, they have lived in their adopted home Aiken, SC. They became very active in Aiken, particularly democratic politics, and the community Thanksgiving Celebration, as well as the local chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, an organization dedicated to providing children’s beds to families in need. But they found their greatest “home” in their beloved church. Both Lynn and Grant loved the positive, welcoming, community they found in the Greater Faith Fellowship Church, a largely African American congregation. Separation from the church by the ravages of COVID, was one of his greatest regrets of the pandemic.

     A Celebration of Grant's Life will be Saturday morning, February 5th at 11 o'clock at Greater Faith Fellowship Church.

     In lieu of flowers please send donations to Greater Faith Fellowship Church, 905 E Pine Log Rd., Aiken, SC 29003, or to Sleep in Heavenly Peace at https://www.shpbeds.org/. Memorial services will be announced.

SHELLHOUSE - RIVERS FUNERAL HOME, 715 EAST PINE LOG RD., AIKEN, SC