John C. Gross ’54 died Sept. 24, 2023, at Bethel Home in Madison at age 91.
Gross, of Madison, was selected as a Distinguished Alumnus in 2005 and an Eminent Farmer for his achievements with the Holstein breed of cattle in 2008.
He was a four-year, three-sport letterman at the high school in Madison and played football at South Dakota State until suffering a serious knee injury. As student body president, he drove the Bummobile in the Hobo Day parade. He graduated with degrees in dairy production and animal husbandry.
He became a classifier for the National Holstein Association, the breed to which he tied his career. He served as a director on the state and national Holstein boards and traveled the U.S. and many foreign countries classifying herds.
He owned many highly rated registered cows and bulls and shipped frozen embryos from those cattle around the world.
Throughout it all, Gross supported programs at SDSU. He funded the John C. Gross Dairy and Animal Science Endowment that benefits the dairy cattle, dairy products and livestock judging teams. He also funded the Embryo Transfer Program that helped students learn the business of embryonic transfer.
Survivors include his wife, Millie ’55, of Madison; a daughter, Kathy (Jim), of Excelsior, Minnesota; and two sons, Allan (Julie ’93) and John (Sheila), both of Madison.
