Russell Neil Gates
Obituary
Russell Neil Gates passed away July 22,
2019, in Upland, California, after a brief illness. Neil, as he was
known to everyone, was born March 5, 1939, in Newton, to his parents
Russell and Eva Gates. He joined his older brothers Sid and Keith at
the family home in Wichita.
A few years later, the family moved to
a farm near Cassoday. They lived close to their aunt and uncle,
Forest and Sarah Plummer and their family: Ben, Kay, Al and June, and
enjoyed all the fun and mischief that young kids could get into
living out in the country. When Neil was 8 years old, the family
moved to a home on S.W. Fourth Street in Newton.
Neil attended Washington Grade School
and then Newton High School, where he played football on the varsity
team until a broken collar bone sidelined him. After high school,
Neil joined the Air Force in 1957 and served his four years as fire
rescue at Clovis Air Force Base in New Mexico. After his discharge
from the Air Force in 1961, Neil returned to the family home in
Newton on S. E. Sixth Street. He worked in Wichita for KG&E.
Neil and Hazel Wilson, also from
Newton, were married in April 1962. After a short residence in
Wichita, they moved to Ontario, California, in June of 1962. Neil
worked in construction, building new homes for several years before
going to work for Hooker Headers fabricating exhaust systems for all
types of race cars. He readily advanced to Senior Design Engineer at
Hooker Headers.
Neil's love of racing included owning a
Top Fuel Dragster in 1965 that ran at the famous Fontana Drag Strip
in California. While with Hooker, he ran the Baja 500 and 1000 races
in a custom built Corvair powered Dune Buggy. His long experience
with all parts of an engine made him a valuable member of the design
team at Hooker Headers. Neil built the custom headers for Richard
Petty and his famous Dodge Daytona Car No. 44.
After 13 years at Hooker Headers, Neil
left there to form his own company - Gates Products - in Upland
California. He set up his shop there to manufacture the oak and
chrome frames for the tops on hot rods specializing in Ford Phaeton
models. His products were second to none and always in high demand.
In 1987, Neil moved to San Juan
Capistrano, California, close to Dana Point, where his sister, Nancy,
and her husband John were living. Neil went to work for Yamaha
Research and Development in 1988 in Cypress, California. While there,
Neil worked on many water recreation products and even built a
prototype motorhome for the Japanese market. After shipping it and
Neil to Japan for testing, Yamaha shelved the project and it was
never seen again. Neil retired from Yamaha in 2002.
After retirement, Neil enjoyed spending
time with his many friends and family. Neil loved the ocean and
hanging out at beautiful Dana Point Harbor. Neil never met a stranger
and never said "no" to anyone in need of help with
anything. Neil was the best son, brother, father, uncle and friend
that anyone could ever hope to have. We will all miss him so very
much, but we find comfort in knowing that Neil is with our Lord and
Savior for all Eternity.
Neil is survived by two brothers, Sid
Gates of Denver and Keith Gates of Elsinore, California, who passed
away a month after Neil; and one sister, Nancy Baumann and her
husband John of Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. He and Hazel White
shared three beautiful daughters, Shellie Kolbrek of Bakersfield,
California, Shannon Hager of Cucamonga, California, and Leslie
Rudolph of Alta Loma, California. Neil also leaves six grandchildren:
Chris, Cameron, Britney, Brandon, Nichole and Matt; and two
great-grandchildren, Madison and Harrison, with loving memories of
their "Papa."
There will be a joint memorial service
for Neil and his brother, Keith, at 11 a.m. Friday (Oct. 18, 2019) at
Petersen Funeral Home in Newton.
