Gary Stephen Lawrence was born in August 1956 in Kentucky, U.S. He is the son of David Vernon Lawrence and Doris Shrader, who were both natives of Kentucky. His father was a basketball player at the University of Kentucky and later became the dean of students at the University of Louisville. His mother was a homemaker who raised Gary and his siblings.
Gary followed his father’s footsteps and enrolled at the University of Louisville, where he studied business administration and graduated in 1978. There, he also met his future wife, Karen Koch.
