3/21/1944 – 3/15/2024
Lawrence, KS
Gary L. Prager, 79, died March 15, 2024 in Lawrence, Kansas. He was born March 21, 1944 in Ottawa, Kansas, the son of Clarence Fred & Dorotha Louise Prager.
Gary graduated from Ottawa High School and continued on to play local college basketball. He also served honorably in the United States Marine Corps Ready Reserve.
Gary shared one son, James ‘Jamie’ Prager, with his first wife Janice Prager.
He then spent the last 30 years of his life with his wife, Yvette, and helped raise four daughters. Gary was an assistant little league baseball coach and drove the girls to and from countless sports practices and activities.
Basketball remained a favorite hobby of his throughout his lifetime – be it playing recreationally or cheering on his Kansas Jayhawks. He also enjoyed cheering on the Kansas City Chiefs – and, of course, sideline coached from his comfy spot on the couch as needed. Gary had a love for animals and was often seen with a loyal dog by his side. In his earlier years, it was his pet cougar riding shotgun for joyrides. Gary enjoyed classic cars, sports, antiques, and woodworking. There wasn’t a piece of furniture that he couldn’t bring back to life with a good stripping and refinishing. He loved meatloaf and requested it every year for his birthday dinner. Gary also enjoyed time with family, tinkering in his workshop, browsing estate and garage sales, and always had a solid joke or two on hand to lighten the moment.
In addition to his parents, Gary was preceded in death by his brother Larry Kent Prager; nephew Mark Prager; great-nephew Dalton Prager; and son-in-law Seth Alford.
Gary is survived by his wife, Yvette Bowlin-Prager; his son, James ‘Jamie’ (Micki) Prager; daughters, Justine (Jason) Flory, Haley Alford, Alicia Rogers and Caitlin Bowlin; sister-in-law, Judy Prager; brother-in-law, Gordon (Tonya) Dye; 13 grandchildren; many nieces and nephews.
Note: We are offering Lawrence and Douglas County community members space to publish remembrances of loved ones who lived in this community, free of charge. These pieces are submitted by family and friends of the deceased and not written by our staff.
We are glad to be able to offer this service free to community members in mourning. We believe the last thing our neighbors need in those difficult moments is another financial matter to worry about. Please consider a paid subscription to the Times to help us continue providing this service and news access for all.
To submit an obituary to The Lawrence Times, please fill out the form at this link. We’re sorry, but we cannot accept obituary submissions via email or other means.
If you are interested in sponsoring obituaries on our site through advertising, please email us at ads (at) lawrencekstimes (dot) com.
Read other obituaries here.
