Gordon Dale Walk was born October 4th, 1939 in Ardmore, Oklahoma and passed away on January 11th, 2026 in Modesto, California. He always lived life to the fullest, and there’s no doubt he’s now listening to Jimmy Buffet’s “Margaritaville” while wearing a big sombrero with a margarita in his hand.
Gordon, son of Charles and Edith Walk, was a lifetime resident of the Central Valley, living mostly in Ceres, Modesto, and Turlock, and then a few years on the water in Clearlake, California. Gordon was the baby of the family, following five siblings, Van, Marge, Kenny, Patricia, and Charles.
He graduated from Downey High School in Modesto and then spent one year at Modesto Junior College before he joined the workforce with the Stanislaus County Public Works Department, working there for thirty years before he retired as Road Supervisor.
In this time period, Gordon would meet the love of his life, Mary Nall, to whom he would be married to for sixty-five years. They were introduced to each other through a mutual friend, Marilyn Lewis, at Al’s Drive-In on McHenry. They later had their first date at Murph’s Pizza on McHenry. They were soon married and had three daughters together, Barbra, Sabra, and Tamara.
The next few decades would be some of the happiest years of the pair’s lives at their home they affectionately called, “The Ranch,” in Ceres. While raising their three active girls was an adventure in itself, The Ranch was also home to stubborn horses and even more stubborn Shetland ponies. The Ranch posed its stresses, but it was also an incredibly rewarding endeavor. Gordon and Mary enjoyed hosting BBQs with their family and friends, and that included Joe and Janelle Sanford, Marilyn and Earl Lewis, Joe and Patty Occhipinti, and Sal and Donna Canella. Gordon would make tri-tip on the grill, his favorite, while everyone swam in the pool on hot summer days. When Gordon wasn’t teaching his girls to ride horses and how to live on a ranch, he would go hunting with friends and fishing with his older brother, Kenny.
After his daughters left the house to start their own lives as adults, Gordon and Mary moved to Christmas Tree Lane in Ceres. Gordon would decorate the outside of the house in blue Christmas lights—because blue was his favorite color. Always looking to live a full life, Gordon took many trips with his family down to Mexico and Hawaii, enjoyed the casinos in Laughlin and Black Oak, and even famously danced to “I’m Too Sexy” on the casino floor at Eldorado while in Reno.
Gordon was close with each of the men his daughters married. Barbra married Steve Todd, Sabra married Eldo Harris, and Tamara married Ramsey Keo, and they fished, hunted, boated, and enjoyed life together.
Gordon was lucky enough to know the joys of being a grandfather with his four grandchildren, Amanda, Erika, Luke, and Hunter. He was brought great happiness spending time with them, teaching all of them how to fish, and attending their football games and other activities.
Gordon’s greatest joy in life was his family.
A Celebration Of Life in Gordon’s honor is being held Saturday, January 24th at 1:00pm – 4:00pm at a private residence in Turlock. Contact Tamara Keo at 707-245-0500 for details if you’d like to attend.
