Gil Hogue

Good morning. I know ya’ll don’t recognize that name, but I wanted to say a few words about Gil Hogue.
I’ll start by saying that Gil is my uncle and father to my cousin/brother, Ryan.
Gil passed away this morning after contracting covid while also courageously battling Parkinson’s and cancer.
He passed peacefully with my brother holding his hand, under the warmth of his Razorback blanket.

I have said this many times before, but it bears repeating, Ryan Hogue is the best man I know.
He lost his job just as his dad fell ill. Ryan lives in Kansas City, and his dad lived in the small town of Weiner, Arkansas. Ryan took on the job of caregiver from a distance, but eventually spent more and more time in Arkansas caring for his dad than he did with his wife and son. Eventually, that became too much, and Ryan moved him into a beautiful assisted living facility in KC. Ryan spent nearly every day with his dad. They loved watching the Hogs, Cowboys, and Chiefs together.
Now, both of them can get some well-deserved rest, and Gil gets to go home to my wonderful Aunt Judy. Please pray for Ryan, his wife, Steph, his son, Cooper, and his brother, Shawn.

I will close by telling you a bit about Gil. He was a travelling preacher and drove trucks for the family business, Hogue Farm Supply. Gil could be a bit gruff. My brother does an impression of him that cracks me up every time he does it. But Gil softened over the years, and I really enjoyed spending time with him.

Gil officiated my first wedding, and one of the lines he used was, “life is not a magic show,” which made everyone laugh, but the last laugh is on him, because his grandson, Coop, loves doing magic tricks. :grinning:

When my dad moved to Vegas, Gil helped him move. Gil didn’t drink, but my dad offered him some Jack, and Gil accepted. Dad says it was hilarious…I wish I would have been there to see it, lol.

Gil really liked knives and took pride in keeping them razor sharp. In fact, when we would go out for steak, Gil would use his own pocket knife. :grin:
And when we would go out as a family, Gil always had a sharp hat on. His hat game was strong.

Gil also loved wrestling. If it was on, he was watching it. It was something he really enjoyed watching with Ryan when he got sick.

I collect comic books, and Gill had some really cool old ones. I like superhero books, but Gil liked Conan the Barbarian. I bought the books from him as a poor college student for not a lot of money. They are worth some pretty good money today, and I don’t intend to sell them, but if I ever do, I will split the money with Ryan.

Every time Gil and my Aunt Judy would visit, Gil would grab my old guitar and tune it…even if he had just tuned it a couple of months before, lol. He could strum it pretty good too, and he had a beautiful deep church singing voice.

After my Aunt Judy died, Gil moved back to where his family was in Weiner (they had been living in KC). He would come up for Hog games from time to time when Ryan was in town. He was there with us when we celebrated the 25th anniversary of our National Championship.

I’m gonna miss him, and I am so glad I got to see him one last time a couple of weeks ago.
Funny story, my brother-in-law, Brad (also a good dude) bought Gil a Firehouse sub and he devoured that sucker in no time. :smiley:

Sorry for the long story, but I wanted to put this out into the universe, because when I first asked for your prayers on this board, your response meant a lot to me, but it meant even more to Ryan and his dad. Ryan reads this board but doesn’t post. He’s always been the ice to my fire, lol.
Anyway, I’ll just close by saying what Gil would have been saying later today…Go Hogs!

Thanks for reading, and God Bless. Love you guys.

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Condolences my friend. With memories like that, he will never be gone

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Prayers for you and your family

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I’ve driven by Hogue Farm Supply many times.

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Sorry for your loss, praying for you and the Hogues. He would be pleased to know not only that you loved him, but also that you loved him enough to open your heart to both close acquaintances and to those you have never met. As we get on in life we find our most valued gifts are the people we share our lives with, including some of our message board cronies.

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Thanks for your heartfelt post. Prayers for you and Gil’s extended family. Sad time. Only time and prayers will help to ease the pain of losing a loved one.

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Jeremy, you would be worse than a kid in a candy store if you saw my comic collection. I know you are knowledgeable on current comic prices and how they change a bit over time, Those early issues of CTB can be worth thousands, if in a high 9.0 grade. Have you ever collected the early series of MTG? They can fetch thousands of dollars.

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Sorrowful for your loss Jeremy, prayers for all!

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Man I hate to hear that Jeremy,He sounded like a really cool guy! Praying for you and the family

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Forgive my ignorance…MTG?

Condolences on your loss and prayers for you and your family.

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Thanks for posting. These always reminds us that we are all an extended family here. My
god be with your family

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It dawned on me that you might not be familiar with MTG. Magic the Gathering is a very complex card game, and wildly popular. The initial series of cards came out in 1993-1994 years. Many are worth over $10K. I began collecting coins in the 70’s and comics in the 80’s and vinyl records in the 90’s. That time sink has now moved to options trading. Trading and following our Hogs is full time, or so it seems.

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I never got into Magic, and I am a fool for it. I had a friend with a comic book store, and I could have bought cases of it wholesale.
I also collect sports trading cards, toys, vintage casino chips, crystals, bladed weapons, and of course, Hog stuff.
My house is like a pop culture museum.
I don’t have any stocks, my retirement is my collection.
Btw, none of Gil’s books were close to 9.0, but they were still very cool books.

I remember standing at the revolving comics stand in the Rexall Drug Store in my small town. I would rapidly read the new issues, hidden as well as possibe so I could evade the probing eyes of the wife of the store owner.

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So sorry for your loss Jeremy. It’s so hard to see your loved ones leaving this earth. From your description of Gil I recommend going to You Tube and finding the song “Thank You for Giving to the Lord” by Ray Boltz. It’s a great description of one of the wonderful things your Uncle is experiencing in heaven. I think it will help you and Ryan.

You and your brother/cousin are in my prayers. I had a brother/cousin too. He left this world when I was 19 and he was 18. Take care buddy. Love you Jeremy.

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Sorry for your loss. Prayers for you and the entire family!

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So very sorry for your loss, Jeremy and Ryan. Prayers for you and your family!

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Sorry for this loss and please accept my condolences. Also pass-a-long the same to your cousin Ryan. As others noted and you know, we live on in memory after we depart this life, and there is little doubt this will be the case with Gil Hodge. Our infirmities have dual edges by closing some doors while providing opportunities to rekindle relationships in a manner not possible. My great uncle, my grandfather, and my father lived in our home during their last years, and we were so fortunate in experiencing their presence. They enriched our lives through a much deeper relationship and knowledge they might otherwise have never known. Thank you for sharing this man importance to you and your family.

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Thank you so much, guys. I know I raise a little hell on here sometimes, but the friendships I have made with so many of you mean the world to me.

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