SGT Christopher Alan Greener ARNG
Nevada National Guard
October 5, 1989 – May 21, 2023
Christopher “Chris” Alan Greener was born on October 5, 1989 in Elko, Nevada. From a very young child, Chris always loved the country way of life. He would spend summers at his grandparents’ ranch in Ruby Valley, Nevada. Chris most often had a rope in his hand and if he wasn’t roping a fence post, he was tying something up (one time he tied his mom’s ankle to the piano without her knowing). Chris’s favorite movie was 8 Seconds. As he grew older, he had a passion to ride bulls and he did! Chris loved ranch animals, particularly horses. He often found his place in church on the back of a horse riding out in God’s country. It was a form of therapy for him. As a teenager, Chris enjoyed wrestling, cross country and FFA in high school. He exceeded in school and graduated with an advanced degree. Chris joined the Nevada National Guard while in High School. He eventually deployed with his brother, Dustin, to Afghanistan for one year. Chris had served twelve years in the National Guard and departed as a Sergeant E5.
Chris’s siblings say it best when they describe Chris as someone who was always willing to help you when you asked and he was able. He supported his nieces and nephews with fundraisers, always giving them more so they could reach the next goal – after all, as he would say, “It’s just money.” Chris had a ‘huge’ heart. Chris also had a cantankerous side in that he loved to terrorize and play pranks on his siblings – as his brother said, “You definitely couldn’t trust him when you were in the shower as he was always pushing boundaries for a good laugh.” Eventually he started teasing his nieces and nephews to the point they were in tears, but now that is what they miss most about Uncle Chris. Family was very important to Chris, but the person who was most dear to him was his daughter Isla whom he loved so very much!
We miss him, we miss the conversations and the feeling of being in the same room with Chris. We miss calling his name and having it answered. We miss the cut-off phone calls because he was too busy working his animals. We miss the smile he had on his face when he was loving on his little munchkin and hearing her laugh and say, “Stop Dada.” We miss the hugs and the I love you’s.
Eventually Chris succumbed to PTSD and depression, resulting in him dying by suicide on May 21, 2023, at the young age of 33.
Chris is survived by his daughter, Isla; his parents Rick and Wendy; his siblings, Sandra, William, Chandra, Alisha, Dustin, Richie, Saila and Trevor; his grandmother Marge Warmbrodt; numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews; his best friends Geno Tanner and Sam Anderson as well as so many other family and friends.
It is not that the pain and struggles he was facing are erased. It is that we are now learning how to help carry out his unspoken struggles. Chris left a void in each one of us that will never be replaced. Chris had so much love to give and just wanted to be loved back.
The thing about suicide is that there is no guide on how to act afterward. There is no blueprint on how to move forward without the person in your life or how to grieve them. It is as if you started watching a series in its prime, and you are left with a cliffhanger where the story will never be written. So, in memory of Chris, our family tries our best to continue his story for him.
Resting place: Spring Creek, Nevada
