Loren (Lon) D. Peacock, 88, died June 11 at his home in Vista Royale in Vero Beach.
Peacock was born in Firestone Park, Akron, Ohio, on March 5, 1923, to Herman L. and Velma D. Peacock.
He spent his entire youth in Akron and was a 1941 graduate of Akron Garfield High School.
During World War II, he served his country as a seaman 1st Class in the U.S. Navy aboard the battleship U.S.S. California.
He saw action during the invasion campaigns of Saipan, Guam, Tinian, Okinawa, and the Battle of Leyte Gulf.
His ship also participated in the last battle line engagement in naval history during the Battle of Surigao Straits in the Philippines in Oct. 1944, and he was aboard the U.S.S. California when she was last moored in Philadelphia on Dec. 7, 1945.
In 1953 Lon became a master mason in the Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of Ohio, Akron- Coventry Lodge, thereafter remaining a life member in good standing.
While living in Massillon, Ohio, he coached a Little League team to a city championship and mentored young athletes as a Massillon Tiger Sideliners Club member.
After retirement, he became an avid supporter of Drum Corps International and frequently attended national championships with his wife Elaine.
As a native Ohioan, Peacock remained a devoted fan of Ohio State University football and basketball.
Peacock spent most of his career as the Cleveland district sales manager for Webster Manufacturing, selling custom-engineered material handling systems and equipment, prior to retiring in 1985.
In 1988, Peacock and his wife became full time residents of Vero Beach after living in Medina, Ohio, for over twenty-five years.
He enjoyed the many friends and acquaintances he made in his adopted hometown, and especially enjoyed the various musical events staged by the Vero Beach High School music department and running the weekly movies for nine years at the Vista Royale Clubhouse.
Peacock was preceded in death by his parents, his two brothers Robert and George Peacock, and his high school sweetheart and loving wife of 57 years, Elaine Schaaf Peacock, who died in 2003.
Survivors include daughters Jan Bellack (Ed Pezzoli), of Boston, Mass., and Jean Jordan, of Summerville, S.C.; and son Larry (Nancy) Peacock, of Medina, Ohio; son-in-law Dan Bellack, of Charleston, S.C.; grandchildren Kristen Schoonover, of Brooklyn, N.Y., Jason (Danielle) Bellack, of Charleston, S.C., Braden Bellack, of Austin, Texas, Aaron and Natalie Peacock, of Medina, Ohio; and four great-grandchildren, Henry, Liam, Clare and Bridget.
Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. on July 23rd at Holy Cross Cemetery, in Akron, Ohio, with family, friends, and Masonic brothers in attendance to celebrate Lon’s life.
The family requests donations to the Visiting Nurse Association of Vero Beach, FL, who provided such caring support to both Lon and his family.
