1951
Gregory
2022
Gregory James Kompelien
April 29, 1951 — February 1, 2022
Greg passed peacefully into the arms of his Savior, Jesus Christ, on January 31, 2022, at the age of 70 from natural causes.
Born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Greg embraced the values of his faith and family throughout his life. After graduating from high school in Richfield, Minnesota, Greg headed west to Brigham Young University. He enlisted in the U.S. Army and became a warrant officer CWII as a Medical Evacuation Helicopter Pilot. As part of the "Firebird" unit, he piloted a unique helicopter that carried both "light water tanks" and medics in fire suits designed for rescue from plane crashes. He met and married the love of his life at Ft Hood, Texas.
After leaving the Army, he went back to BYU for several years and then moved to Las Vegas in 1982 to work in the Printing and Graphics industry. He gradually transitioned from repairing printing presses to building and fixing desktop computers. He loved nothing more than being given an electronic or mechanical problem by a customer or a friend. Some people do crossword puzzles; Greg fixed anything and everything.
When something caught his interest, he would be 100% focused on mastering it. His first love was flying, soloing as a teenager in the Junior Air Patrol. Other passionate loves over the years included scuba diving, welding, machining parts on his lathes, video editing his movie collection, ammunition reloading, learning CAD design, and 3-D printing.
Greg had a deeply personal relationship with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He tried to follow in His footsteps by helping others, giving generously, being humble about his intellectual gifts, and being honest with his fellow man. His love for others may have started in his own family, but it spread out to many friends that he called his "brothers".
In lieu of flowers, please feel free to remember Greg fondly and to donate to the charity of your choice.
He is survived by his wife, Hazanne Hetzler Kompelien, and two sons David (Niki) of Rathdrum, Idaho, and John (Nicolette) of Plano, Texas; two granddaughters, Melanie and Breanna, whom he cherished, and his Minnesota family that includes his mother, Lois C. Kompelien, brothers Dale (Debbie) and Ron Kompelien, and sister, Judy Wise Yantos (Tim) as well as aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. Greg was preceded in death by his father, Arlon D. Kompelien.
A service and celebration of life will be held at 11 am on February 12, 2022, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 6601 W. Twain Avenue, Las Vegas, NV 89103.
Viewing will be held prior to the service from 9:30 to 10:45 am at the church. Private graveside service and internment will be held in March 2022 at the Southern Nevada Veterans' Cemetery in Boulder City, Nevada.
Born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Greg embraced the values of his faith and family throughout his life. After graduating from high school in Richfield, Minnesota, Greg headed west to Brigham Young University. He enlisted in the U.S. Army and became a warrant officer CWII as a Medical Evacuation Helicopter Pilot. As part of the "Firebird" unit, he piloted a unique helicopter that carried both "light water tanks" and medics in fire suits designed for rescue from plane crashes. He met and married the love of his life at Ft Hood, Texas.
After leaving the Army, he went back to BYU for several years and then moved to Las Vegas in 1982 to work in the Printing and Graphics industry. He gradually transitioned from repairing printing presses to building and fixing desktop computers. He loved nothing more than being given an electronic or mechanical problem by a customer or a friend. Some people do crossword puzzles; Greg fixed anything and everything.
When something caught his interest, he would be 100% focused on mastering it. His first love was flying, soloing as a teenager in the Junior Air Patrol. Other passionate loves over the years included scuba diving, welding, machining parts on his lathes, video editing his movie collection, ammunition reloading, learning CAD design, and 3-D printing.
Greg had a deeply personal relationship with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He tried to follow in His footsteps by helping others, giving generously, being humble about his intellectual gifts, and being honest with his fellow man. His love for others may have started in his own family, but it spread out to many friends that he called his "brothers".
In lieu of flowers, please feel free to remember Greg fondly and to donate to the charity of your choice.
He is survived by his wife, Hazanne Hetzler Kompelien, and two sons David (Niki) of Rathdrum, Idaho, and John (Nicolette) of Plano, Texas; two granddaughters, Melanie and Breanna, whom he cherished, and his Minnesota family that includes his mother, Lois C. Kompelien, brothers Dale (Debbie) and Ron Kompelien, and sister, Judy Wise Yantos (Tim) as well as aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. Greg was preceded in death by his father, Arlon D. Kompelien.
A service and celebration of life will be held at 11 am on February 12, 2022, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 6601 W. Twain Avenue, Las Vegas, NV 89103.
Viewing will be held prior to the service from 9:30 to 10:45 am at the church. Private graveside service and internment will be held in March 2022 at the Southern Nevada Veterans' Cemetery in Boulder City, Nevada.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Gregory James Kompelien, please visit our flower store.
Guestbook
Visits: 1
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the
Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors