- Date Of Birth: January 30, 1919
- Date Of Death: January 26, 2014
- State: Indiana
George F. Loney, 94, of Elkhart, went to be with the Lord on Sunday, Jan. 26, at Elkhart General Hospital.
George was born on Jan. 30, 1919, in Bourbon to the late Jacob Oscar and Zua (Bearss) Loney.
Surviving is his faithful loving wife, Marjorie, whom he married Sept. 3, 1938 in Roseland. They were blessed to have celebrated 75 years of marriage. Also surviving are two daughters, Darlene “Suzie” Calvo-Nelson and Carmen (Kenneth) Rozycki, both of Elkhart. He was also blessed with five grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren. In addition, many loving nieces and nephews and the last living relative on the Loney-side, Laura (Mark) Hull-Stankford of Altadena, Calif., survive.
A brother, Kirk Loney, preceded him in death.
George graduated from Elkhart High School, and then went to Reno, Nev. He later returned to attend tool and die design school. He formerly worked at Bendix Corp. and Hudkins Co. He later became Chief Tooling Engineer at Excel Industries; he did much traveling for them to Canada, Detroit and Tennessee to purchase steel, until he retired after 25 years of service.
George’s passion was learning to fly and attaining his pilot’s license. He was an accomplished artist and a published author — “The Third Bomb” — in England. George was proud of his service as a Machinist Mate Second Class in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He served on the USS Denebola, and was awarded the Victory Medal and American Area Campaign Medal and received a piece of the steering wheel from the ship after it was decommissioned.
He was a member of the VFW, American Legion and a member of Elkhart Moose Lodge 599. He also attended Bethel Assembly of God Church in Elkhart.
George was an avid gardener and reader. In addition, George was known for his keen sense of humor. He enjoyed living on the upper St. Joseph River, where he fed the many squirrels, birds, geese and swans in his backyard.
