Gary A. Skeen, long-time Denton resident and owner of Hoop's Machine and Welding, died April 15, 2021. He was an avid golfer, Cowboys fan, and the very model of what a Girl Dad should be.

Born in Electra, Texas, August 20, 1937, to Lawrence David Skeen and Ruby McGlaughn Skeen, Gary spent much of his early childhood in Nocona. His father died when Gary was 8, and after that he lived largely with grandparents and his beloved Aunt Katie until his mother married F.W. (Smokey) Tanner and they moved back to Electra. His grandfather, H.A. (Shorty) Trousdale, owned the Electra Machine Shop, and when Gary was 14, Shorty put him to work learning welding, setting him on his life's path.

Gary graduated from Electra High School, where he was on the district champion golf team and was voted Most Representative Boy. He met Bobbie Jean Patty while hanging out at her father's garage, working on cars and building model airplanes. Bobbie was 16 and Gary 18 when they decided to get married. After an unsuccessful elopement attempt, they married February 3, 1956. They were married for 43 years, until Bobbie's death in 1999.

Three daughters came along in quick succession, and in 1959 Gary joined the Army National Guard to supplement his work as a welder and machinist. The family moved to Denton in 1963 when Gary went on active duty with the National Guard at the Nike missile base north of town. After seven years in the National Guard, Gary returned to civilian life and worked for Denton Concrete and the Davis Brothers, and in 1968 he picked up a part-time job working for M.H. Hooper at Hoop's Machine and Welding, eventually settling in at the shop at 600 Fort Worth Drive for over 50 years.

Gary took over as owner of Hoop's Machine and Welding in 1981 and built a reputation as a man who could fix anything. He continued to work up to his 80 ^th birthday, when bypass surgery slowed him down to a couple of visits a week. Gary's declining health, combined with pandemic slowdowns, retirements and a disposable culture, brought the family to a tough but necessary decision, and Hoop's Machine and Welding closed its doors on August 21, 2020, ending a 72-year run as a Denton institution.

Gary married Judy Hutchinson Hayes, the girl next door, on March 16, 2002, blending their combined six kids and an ever-growing group of grandchildren and great-grandchildren into one big rowdy bunch. Judy and Gary shared almost 20 happy years together, taking cruises to Alaska and New England, moving into a new home and sharing each other's interests. Through Gary's illness, Judy surrounded him with the very best care possible.

Gary picked up his first golf club as a toddler and promptly swung it in the wrong direction. While right-handed for everything else, he played golf left-handed and loved every round. In 1952, his mother wrote to Ben Hogan asking if he could give her young son some golf lessons. While Hogan declined the opportunity, he did send Gary an autographed photo signed "Golfingly Yours" which was a prized possession for the rest of Gary's life. His 50 ^th birthday gift was a trip to California to play a round at Pebble Beach, and he even made the pilgrimage to Augusta to watch a Masters practice round. He was also a long-time member of the Denton Country Club.

Long before #GirlDad became cool, Gary lived it. He survived decades of Girl Scout Daddy-Daughter Banquets, junior high band concerts, drill team halftime shows, oceans of hysterical tears, and door-slamming teenage angst to reap the rewards of granddaughters who adored him. With three teenaged daughters driving, he often joked that his name was "Daddy-My-Car" because half of his phone calls opened with "Daddy, my car…ran out of gas/has a dead battery/broke down on I-20 near Tyler."

Gary is survived by his wife, Judy Skeen; daughters Carrie Skeen and her husband Michael Gibson, Patti Tichacek and her husband Paul Tichacek, and Amy Skeen; granddaughters Emily, Claire and Hannah Tichacek; stepson Rhom Hutchinson and Tami Trobaugh, and his daughter Harlee Hutchinson and son Josh Kroeger (Kirsten); stepdaughter Jodi Williamson and her husband Allen Williamson, and their children Justin Williams (Erin Vandagriff), Rachel Williamson and Garrett Williamson; Coyt Hutchinson and his wife Gigi Hutchinson and their son Kobe Hutchinson; five great-grandchildren; and an army of wonderful friends his daughters refer to as the FOGs: Friends of Gary.

Gary's family sends sincere thanks to the dedicated and caring staffs of Medical City Denton, Medical City Lewisville, and VNA Ann's Haven Hospice.

In lieu of flowers, please join us in honoring Gary and a lifetime of hard work by making a contribution to The Gary A. Skeen Vocational Scholarship for Denton ISD students choosing vocational/technical schools. Contributions may be made online at garyskeen.givesmart.com or by mail at Denton Public School Foundation, Inc. 1307 N. Locust Denton, Texas 76201

Visitation will be Tuesday, April 20 at DeBerry Funeral Directors from 5-7 p.m. followed by a brief Memorial Service at 7:00 p.m. Gary's ashes will be interred at Roselawn in a private family service at a later date.