John "Jay" Grundman

John F “Jay” Grundman, loving father, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend passed away peacefully on January 16, 2021, at the age of 87.
Jay was born October 14, 1933, in Montclair, NJ, to Jack and Elise (Stanley) Grundman. He spent his childhood years in New Jersey before his family moved to Lawton, OK in 1952, where he attended and graduated from Lawton High School as part of the class of 1954. After graduation, Jay volunteered for the draft and joined the U.S. Army where he served overseas in England.  He married Barbara (Kimball) Grundman February 25th, 1955, at Ft. Bliss, TX.  They had 4 children, Mike, Alan, Susan and Jimmy. He delivered Coors Beer on his regional truck route at Southwest Sales, Inc. for many years.

Jay was a talented artist who created elaborate line and character drawings.  He enjoyed music and singing and was president of the mixed chorus, a member of the boys’ quartet team in high school and a member of the Lawton Men’s Barbershop Chorus. He played many instruments beautifully by ear including piano and made jewelry for family and friends. He was also a good dancer and enjoyed dancing whenever he got the chance. His favorite song to sing at karaoke was “All My Exes Live in Texas.”  He was an avid sports fan and loved to fish. He played basketball in school and was a league bowler for many years. He enjoyed coaching young bowlers, sharing his knowledge of the game to help them do their best.

Jay’s home for the last 8 years was the Lawton/Ft. Sill Veteran’s Center where he made many friends over the years with fellow veterans and staff.  He enjoyed art projects, playing dominoes, bingo, pool and shuffleboard but his favorite was always the people. Jay was very social, never met a stranger and loved nothing more than being with people and making them laugh. He was a great storyteller and could tell jokes one after another to entertain any crowd for hours. He was known to friends as “Joker Jay” and “Jaybird.”  The family would like to say a special thank you to all of the staff at the Veteran’s Center who took good care of Jay.

Jay was preceded in death by his parents, Jack and Elise, his brother Skip, and his son Alan. He is survived by his former wife, Barbara, sons Mike and Jimmy, daughter Susan, daughter-in-law, Denise, 8 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.

A service will be held for family and close friends on Saturday, April 10, 2021 at 1:00 p.m. at Ritter Gray Funeral Home in Lawton. Masks are required at the funeral home. The service will also be live-streamed at www.grayfuneral.com.

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