Dr. Bryan Douglas Gross' Obituary
Dr. Bryan Gross PhD passed away on May4, 2026. He was a great mind, innovator, and loving father and husband.
Bryan was born to Jack and Betty Gross on December 15th, 1956, in Fairbanks, Alaska. Ambitious from a young age, Bryan attended Colorado State University from 1975 until 1979 achieving a bachelor’s in quantitative Ecology. Immediately after, he earned his Masters and Doctorate from New Mexico State University, finishing in 1984, in Mathematics, Statistics and Quantitative Ecology. Originally intending to pursue a career as a university professor, Bryan made a quick pivot in his career to business and moved to Tulsa that same year to begin work at MPSI. There he developed a strong reputation for his work ethic, ambitiousness, and his ability to apply mathematics and statistics to solve problems. While at MPSI, he was eventually promoted to Vice President of Technologies, and later President and CEO.
Bryan met his wife Cindy while they both worked at MPSI, she also had an interest and love for solving complicated problems and working in the early data science and site selection field. Together, they shared a deep intellectual partnership and loving marriage for 33 years. They found great joy in learning together and spent countless hours discussing new discoveries, ideas, and innovations. Together they adopted one son, Aaron. Bryan took immense pride in providing for and spending time with his family, enjoying vacations and explorations across the world.
Bryan continued his career at QuikTrip in 2004 where, over 20 years, he established and developed the Data Science department. He was a true pioneer and innovator in the field of retail data science, retail site selection and consumer research.
Bryan was not just passionate about teaching, but also continuously engaging in learning new topics and subjects. He took great pleasure in putting his knowledge to paper, writing every single day, always encouraging others to take up the joy of journalling. He was also a LEGO enthusiast, not just building from sets, but also drawing up schematics on his own projects, such as ships and tanks, making sure to approach each build with care, assuring every detail from the gas cap to the rigging was perfectly placed.
He was always focused on staying active and took pride in being able to do more at his age than most. From doing gymnastics while in high school, to being an avid rock climber, and finally taking up martial arts. Alongside his son he earned a 3rd degree black belt.
Always having an interest in music, Bryan was a lifelong fan of bands like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Rush, Three Dog Night and Steppenwolf. He enjoyed attending concerts with his son and learning about new genres and artists.
He is survived by his wife Cindy and son Aaron. In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests donations be made to Clarehouse Tulsa.
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