Lee H. Gale Obituary, Death – In the Salina Regional Health Center in Salina, Kansas, on Sunday, October 15, 2023, Lee H. Gale, 71, departed from this life while surrounded by his loved ones. On June 17, 1952, he was born in Concordia, Kansas, to Dr. Mark Ernest and Jane (Boyd) Gale. In 1970, Lee received his diploma from Concordia High School. He later went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in political science from Kansas State University in 1974. On January 3, 1976, he wed Terri Williams in Salina, Kansas. Nicki and Nanci, their two daughters, were born into this partnership. Terri and Lee had been married for forty years.
Lee oversaw operations for a number of department stores in the retail industry. He graduated with a master’s in divinity in 1993 from North America Baptist Seminary. He worked as a Methodist pastor in the Dakota Conference for a number of churches after earning his master’s degree in divinity. Lee began providing Ottertail Minn-Dakota Coaches with motor coach services. Later on, he worked as a bus driver for Wichita, Kansas-based Village Travel. His most recent and most fulfilling job as a bus driver was with the athletic department of Cloud County Community College.
On August 12, 2017, he tied the knot with Marla Joy Jorgensen, a classmate from Concordia High School. Lee watched every Kansas State University and Chiefs game with great enthusiasm. Above all, he genuinely delighted in his Cloud County (Dirty Birds) athletic competitions. Lee was a coffee connoisseur who was always up for a visit and a cup. The following people survive Lee: their mother Terri Shugrue (Tim), Callahan, FL; two daughters, Nicki Gale-Youngberg (Christopher), Fergus Falls, MN, and Nanci Wilson (Mark), Minto, ND; two grandsons, Cooper Wilson and Weston Youngberg; two nephews, Rich Smith, Topeka, KS, and Rob Smith (Janelle), Henderson, TX; and a niece, Pam Clark (Brad), Meriden, KS.
Dr. Mark and Jane Gale, Lee’s wife Marla Joy Jorgensen, sister Nancy Smith (who passed away two days before Lee), brother-in-law Richard Smith, and great-niece Lydia Clark all passed away before him. Rev. Mark Crist will preside over a graveside memorial service at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, October 20, 2023, at Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Concordia, Kansas. Lee requested cremation. At the cemetery, the family asks casual wear from CCCC, KSU, or the KC Chiefs. The family requests that donations be made to the Cloud County Community College Athletic Department, care of the funeral home, in place of flowers. For condolences sent online, go to
