Ellis Elijah Gregg Jr.

February 1, 1927- July 25, 2021

Ellis Elijah Gregg Jr., 94, of Flushing, N.Y., died after a short illness at Berkshire Nursing Home on July 25, 2021.

He was predeceased by his mother, Herlene Marian (Grier) Gregg, and his father, the Rev. Ellis E. Gregg Sr., and his brother, Joseph Tyson Gregg. He is survived by his son, Scott Gregg, of Washingtonville, N.Y., a sister, Alma Gregg, of Princess Anne, Maryland, and a brother, Elbert Gregg, of Silver Spring, Maryland, and many cousins, nephews, nieces, grandnephews and grandnieces.

Ellis was born in Washington D.C. He completed high school at Highland High School in Gastonia, North Carolina, and was only a number of a handful of young men to successfully achieve the rank of Eagle Scout at that time. He and had various jobs before becoming an independent contractor, which he did on and off for much of his life. He was skilled at plumbing, carpentry, bricklaying and stone masonry. He loved to tell people about his theories on horse racing, as he also prided himself in his handicapping skills.

Those who knew him know how much he loved to talk and he was quick to tell you a tale about his adventures. He was very interested in politics, science, nature, and the possibility of extraterrestrial life. He loved to laugh and make others laugh, and when he found a joke he really liked he held onto it for a while, so it’s likely you’d hear the joke from him a second or third time, and he laughed each time as if he were telling the joke for the first time.

He was a generous man. Although he didn’t have much, he was willing to share with people in need. He taught his son the value of putting something aside for a rainy day, something he called a “Foxy Pocket.” Pay yourself first, he said, and then everybody else.

He will be missed.

“If human life were long enough to find the ultimate theory, everything would have been solved by previous generations. Nothing would be left to be discovered.”