Elliott MacGregor “Greg” Strauss, former director and treasurer of the National Horse Show in New York, passed away unexpectedly on Jan. 28 in Middletown, R.I. He was 79.

Mr. Strauss was a graduate of the Eaglebrook School (Mass.), Choate School (Conn.) and Harvard College (Mass.).

Serving as the assistant treasurer to the National Horse Show from 1974 to 1990, Mr. Strauss was elected director in 1976, a role that he kept until 1993. In 1990 he was a trustee of the National Horse Show Foundation.

Liz Rooney Prime, former member of the Ladies Committee of the National Horse Show, said, “I knew Greg since I was about 6. He was truly a ‘gentle man.’ He was unobtrusively generous with his time on committees, boards and numerous charities.”

He was an accomplished horseman and philanthropist. In addition to his National Horse Show duties, Mr. Strauss also was president of the Newport Reading Room, on the Board of Directors of the Newport Historical Society, the Redwood Library, and on the Board of Advisors of the Biltmore Company in Asheville, N.C. He was a member of the Harvard & Union Clubs in New York, N.Y., and of the Metropolitan Club in Washington, D.C.

“Greg was probably most comfortable in his tweed hat and jacket working in the fields on a tractor or with his sheep on the farm,” Prime added.

Mr. Strauss’ survivors include his wife, Luise; daughters Caroline Morris and Lydia Tower; sister Lydia Delaunay; brothers Armar Strauss and Christopher Strauss.

Memorial donations may be made to the Newport Historical Society, 82 Touro St., Newport, RI 02840; the Redwood Library and Athenaeum, 50 Bellevue Avenue, Newport RI 02840 or the ASPCA, 424 E. 92nd St., New York, NY 10128-6804.