Gregory R. Lange

On June 7, 2023, Gregory R. Lange passed away at the age of 83 at the Active Care Facility in Yorba Linda, CA. His unforeseen death brought an abrupt end to a triumphant life full of adventure and full of success. Although there were many setbacks and hardships, he accomplished most of what he set forth to accomplish. Greg learned to fly gliders and airplanes in his youth. He founded a business that flourished. He married twice and ensured the well-being of all his children and his children's mothers.
Born in East Prussia, Germany on August 28, 1939, at the onset of World War II. The first six years of Greg's life were spent surviving along with his older sister, Brunhild, and his mother, Rose, through the ravages of that war. Right or wrong, Greg's father died fighting for the German cause, but before he was killed and foreseeing the imminent defeat of Germany, he advised his wife, to flee East Prussia before the onslaught of the Russian Army. As refugees, they traveled west to Dresden, where young Greg remembered the pounding of the bombs and the booming of the anti-aircraft fire as Dresden was destroyed.
By God's grace, he, along with his mother and sister, survived and made their way to the relative safety of British-occupied Hamburg, Germany. There, they joined up with his aunts and uncles, who went through their own harrowing experiences to escape the vengeance of Russian soldiers, who, right or wrong, blamed the German people for the suffering of their Russian families.
In Hamburg, Germany, he grew up, played soccer as a goalkeeper, and went to school until the age of fourteen, which in Germany at the time, is the age to enter an apprenticeship. He apprenticed as a machinist, and in his free time, he learned to fly gliders.
At the age of 19, he left Hamburg, Germany, and traveled by ship and then by train to Orange County, California. He met his first wife, Clotilde, at Disneyland by asking her to dance. At the age of 21, he married Clotilde. At the age of 22, he became a father with the birth of his daughter Audrey. At the age of 23, his son, Gregory, was born and at the age of 25, his wife, Clotilde gave birth to his second daughter Susan. Also, at the age of 25, he founded his company, Lange Precision, that would eventually grow into a large aerospace machine shop.
As he built his company, he bought houses and airplanes. He loved flying and piloted his airplanes to many beautiful and scenic places around the country and around the world. Again, he survived a few harrowing mishaps that can only come with flying airplanes.
As Lange Precision expanded, he provided many jobs to many men and women. Some of his employees stayed working with him for over 40 years. At the age of 55, Greg began a new chapter in his life and married Lisa. At the age of 57, his youngest daughter, Gracie, was born. Unfortunately, Greg developed Alzheimer's and the business had to be sold.
Greg is survived by his wife Lisa, his four children, Audrey Stanford, Gregory Lange, Susan Hansen and Gracie Lange: his six grandchildren, Megan Fried, Ashley Stanford, Kyle Stanford, Caroline Hansen, Fiona Hansen, and Gregory Vincent Lange. He also is survived by his sister Brunhild Jaschinski and his brother Peter Erlich and his sister Monika. His siblings all still live in Germany.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Alzheimer's Association www.alz.org.