Bryan Gray Sizemore

Bryan Gray Sizemore, 62, passed away peacefully on Saturday, April 18, 2026, in Heiskell, Tennessee. Though he was the fifth child born of six children, he is the first of his siblings to depart from this life, leaving behind a legacy of kindness, humor, and many stories that his family and friends will remember with both tears of grief for our loss, and tears of joy as God guides our beloved Bryan into the next amazing adventure.

Born June 27, 1963 in Langley, Virginia, Bryan is now reunited with his parents, Tad Eugene Sizemore, who passed away when Bryan was only seven years old, and Rose Carol (Gray) Sizemore who passed away in 2020. Bryan lived in Farragut, TN and attended Farragut High School. In the 1990s, Bryan purchased a beautiful six-acre property in Heiskell and moved his mother and younger sister to share the land with him. Bryan believed in taking care of family, and he did so by keeping his mom and sister safe and surrounded by beauty. He was also pretty handy at fixing things, so anything that broke up on ‘the mountain’, he could put it back together again even if it was a banged-up tailpipe or two on the long driveway up. Sometimes it was the same tailpipe you’d get back. Bryan believed in recycling usable materials.

Bryan always had musical interests singing in various bands and was lead singer for LOOKER and Bad Madness. For many years, he traveled around in Florida and various other states performing original songs written by Bryan and others. His favorite song from the Bad Madness album was entitled “Younger Daze” a song he wrote about his father. He also told stories about the song he wrote about his first wife Carolyn entitled “Take Me Drunk”. As a child he would sing with his siblings at church on occasion, an early opportunity to plant the love of music in his heart.

Bryan was an excellent cook (we cannot overemphasize this enough!) and worked for Copper Cellar and Calhoun’s as a cook for many years. He created new recipes for his family and introduced them to a willing and receiving public at the restaurant. Bryan was also a seafood manager at Kroger in Oak Ridge. If there were shrimp, crab and lobster involved, Bryan knew how to turn them into a delightful culinary experience not to be forgotten.

Bryan was also a great mechanic (did we mention he could fix things?). Anything with a motor was not a problem for him, and often, if someone else was in need of a helping hand, Bryan would drop everything to come and repair the car or boat or motorcycle or lawnmower – anything - at the drop of a hat. Bryan’s last job at the time of his passing was with Southern Railroad where he worked as an electrical welder. Bryan worked alongside his beloved friend Tim Woolard. Indeed, Bryan absolutely hated missing work because he hated being away from like-minded colleagues who loved to fix things right along with him, and he truly enjoyed the skills he learned during his treasured time at the railway.

To know Bryan was to know a man who was very giving, a man who really would give you the shirt off his back (beware of welder burns and barbecue sauce stains). Bryan never turned down anyone threatened with homelessness and he took in many friends while they found financial footing to rehome themselves. At the time of his death, he had opened his home to his little brother, Chris, after the Asheville floods. Bryan participated in the Great Family Reunion by feeding all the workers who helped come up to the mountain to remodel his mother’s house for his son, Zachary Tadd Sizemore (Rebecca Michele Rickman) and his grandchildren, Alaiyna Jane Fox (LJ), Wilder Tadd Sizemore and Satori Isla Rose (affectionately called “Tori bug”). He created an opportunity for his grandchildren to have a place to live and grow up safely playing in a yard and watching deer step out of the woodlands. And maybe he smiled as he remembered how he had helped his mom in the very same way.

Bryan is survived by his son, Zach and beloved grandchildren as mentioned above. He is also survived by his beloved stepson, Scott Aaron Holtzman (Kelsie); and grandchildren, Hayes and Mac. We’ll get to the other names in a moment, but we must mention that Bryan had about twenty or so dogs on that property who all played an important part in his life, and he leaves behind his sweet dog, Biscuit. Always one with a sense of good ‘food’ humor, Bryan nicknamed his brother’s dog, Bagel (hey, it rhymes with Sable!) and would call out “Biscuit and Bagel, come get your Beggin’ cheese strips!” This is a sweet calling in they will never hear again.

The rest of us, his siblings, in birth order:

Kim Edward Sizemore (Mary) of Hickory, NC

Valerie Jill Sizemore (Jen) of Dallas, TX

Tracey (Tippie) Virginia Sizemore (Darryl Hitson) of Farragut, TN and his beloved nephew Robert Matthew DeMonbrun (Andrea Galaviz DeMonbrun) and their children Mila, Nora, Jude, and Eli

Kelly Susan Sizemore of Lafollette, TN

Christopher Tad Sizemore of Heiskell, TN (children, beloved nieces Shelby, Lola, and Reagan and their mom, Stephanie)

Who can survive in a world without close friends? Bryan is also survived by a dear companion and friend, Kelli Jean Hayes, and close friends Cameron Gravely and Eric Lowe and Tim Woolard. There are countless others who traveled alongside Bryan, and he probably called all y’all “Bob” but we know what he meant, and we’ll most likely smile when we catch ourselves calling out to the stranger in the car in front of us, “Hey Bob, the light’s green!” He’d like that.

The family gives thanks for the heartfelt care and compassion shown by all who have supported Bryan since the stroke he suffered in early November 2025. Our hearts are full of gratitude for having him with us for a few more months before he went to bed early on a Friday night, never to wake up to us again.

Bryan’s dream was to retire at age 65 and move to Norris Lake where he loved to go water skiing, jet skiing and spend the night on his house boat. His dogs were always wary of his boat trips as a few have been left on an island for a day or two when they failed to return after being called. But Bryan always went back for them and returned them safely to the mountain.

That was his life – his family, his friends, his dogs, and dreams of retirement on the water. In honor of this, the family will have a memorial service at Norris Lake at a later date. In lieu of flowers please make donations to the family of Zachary Sizemore for Bryan’s dog Biscuit or bring a few bags of dog food and dog treats. Bryan used to go and get Beggin’ Strips for Biscuit at Rural King every Friday without fail. Bryan loved that dog. He deeply loved all of them. And we deeply loved you. Go with God, Bryan. Our hearts are broken, but yours is fully mended and in full flight over that beautiful Norris Lake. Catch you later, Bob.