My Tribute to D Gary Young

Breathe. 

I just learned of our founder D Gary Young’s passing, and I keep vacillating from sobbing to denial to quiet. This is no ordinary CEO of a company; in fact, he gave that position to his wife because he’d much rather be on a horse, in the fields, and exploring other countries than in a business suit in a meeting room. I began sifting through some of my favorite photos of him to shed light on the kind of person he was: an adventurer, a pioneer, a maverick, a botanical genius, a master formulator, an inspiring leader, a compassionate philanthropist, an engaging teacher, and a doting husband and father. And so much more.

He has battled health setback after health setback and has pushed through them all, until now. He’s battled ridicule and bad press, but he kept pressing forward—building more farms, creating more jobs, funding more humanitarian projects, and changing the lives of everyone who has made their way into his beloved company, Young Living.

I can imagine the tears spilling all over the planet, for the lives he touched were spread far and wide. Ecuador. Australia. France. Croatia. Oman. Nepal. More....

Our company has lost the mastermind behind these life-changing oils—My life—Has been forever transformed, deeply, through and through...because of his genius—his hard-headed genius, his tenacity, his keep-on-keepin-on spirit that led to the creation of the products that I choose never to go without. It was also this raw stubbornness that led to him pushing personal boundaries far beyond any limits others could place on him. Jousting, dog mushing in subzero temps in his late 60s, building schools, farms, houses in Nepal with his own bare hands...telling his body that it could do more and more and more; believing in—never doubting—the power behind the very products he created for the world.

I am sad for those who will never watch him light up the stage with his brilliant stories. I weep for his wife and sons; good Lord the love they had for that man is something fierce. I pray that the vision of this company will not only continue, but will flourish in the legacy he leaves. I will not say RIP for Gary doesn't rest. Ride on, DGY, ride on.