Gary Goldsberry

Gary Ray Goldsberry, age 73, passed peacefully on Wednesday, December 10, 2025 from a very aggressive form of liver cancer. Gary was born to Carol and Florence (Curry) Goldsberry on May 22, 1952 in Des Moines, IA. The family lived on the Goldsberry family farm in Runnells, IA for several years before moving to Sigourney for a couple years. They settled in Carlisle, IA in 1962 where Gary graduated from Carlisle High School in 1970.

Gary delivered the Des Moines Register paper to the Carlisle community as a young teen. He went on to work at Hy-Vee while in high school. Gary went to technical school in Des Moines, IA at the United Electronic Institute for two years. He moved to Rockford, IL to work in 1974 and worked for Barber-Colman until retirement in 2012. The name of the company changed several times along with the type of jobs he held.

Gary resided in the same house for 51 years in Rockford, Illinois. He had several rental houses that he enjoyed fixing up. He had a great love for dogs having several through his lifetime. He had a soft spot for shelter animals and frequently volunteered at the shelter. He especially enjoyed Thor on his lap the last few months.

Gary designed and wrote several programs for craft items for Print Artist many years ago. He enjoyed going to estate sales to find a deal on electronics and to look at the architecture of the houses. He hosted several garage sales yearly at his home. He loved watching Sci-Fi and owned several hundred DVD’s before streaming became popular. Gary had an ornery sense of humor and loved to kid around with you which never left him even through the pain of cancer.

Gary was preceded in death by his parents (Carol 1981 & Florence 2017) and a brother David (1955). He is survived by his brother Mark (Connie), nephews Travis (Stacey), Josh (Lindsay) and niece Aubrey Atkin (John) along with 8 great nieces/nephews and 2 great-great nephews.

A visitation will be held at Peterson’s Funeral Home in Carlisle on Wednesday, December 17th, 2025 from 5-7. A private burial will be held at a later date.