Gary Maurstad was born April 21, 1943 to Arnold and Linnea (Westling) Maurstad in Bellingham, WA. On May 26, 1973 he married Jan Koester in Robbin, MN where they lived for 6 years. In 1979 they moved to Drayton, ND where together they made a home and raised a family. He worked for Brown Truck Line for many years. In July 1992 he started Gary's Tree Service and for the next 20 years he built a loyal customer base up and down the Red River Valley, and worked closely with the Grand Forks Park District. Gary was a member of Skjeberg Lutheran Church, where he served as head usher for many years, and also served on the church council. He will be remembered for his kind gentle spirit and his wonderful sense of humor. He was famous for his quick witted one-liners. He is survived by his wife Jan, daughter Jana Grzadzieleski, Thief River Falls, MN and son Brent Maurstad, Drayton, ND. His grandsons Jordan Grzadzieleski of Thief River Falls, MN, and Garrett Grzadzieleski of Grand Forks, ND and granddaughter Rylee Maurstad of Drayton, ND. His brother-in-law Curtis Engelbrektson of Eden Prairie, MN, sister-in-law Shirley Hanson of Fargo ND, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law Crystal and Gene Paige of Winslow, IL, Roger and Jan Koester of Steele, ND, and Sandra and Dennis Stulz of Dilworth, MN. He was preceded in death by his parents Arnold and Linnea, sister Sharon Engelbrektson, mother and father-in-law Leo and Ocea Koester and brothers-in-law Mike Koester and Andrew Hanson. Visitation will be held at Monday June 23, 2014 from 5-7 at Austin Funeral Chapel in Drayton with a prayer service at 7 pm. Funeral services will be held at Skjeberg Lutheran Church, East Drayton at 10:30 am Tuesday, June 24, 2014.