Gordon B. Greenlee
Gordon B. Greenlee, 77, of Fredericktown, died Thursday, January 3, 2013, in Kindred Hospital, Oakdale, after a brief illness.
He was born June 6, 1935, in Bentleyville, a son of the late John Bentley and Mary Gates Greenlee.
Mr. Greenlee was a 1953 graduate of Bentleyville High School and continued his education at Valley Forge Military Academy and was a graduate of the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science.
In 1957, he joined his father, John B. Greenlee, as a licensed funeral director at his Beallsville funeral home and, in the same year, took over operation of Greenlee Funeral Home in Fredericktown.
From 1957 to 1960, he served in Company A of the U.S. Army Pennsylvania National Guard.
His funeral service career extended more than 55 years, operating Greenlee Funeral Homes in Beallsville, Bentleyville and Fredericktown. Over those years, he served as a mentor to many area funeral directors. He will always be remembered for his patience, calm demeanor and sincerity in providing area families with whatever they needed in their time of loss. He never hesitated to place the needs of the families he served before his own. In 1981, he was presented with the Community Citizen Award by the Deemston Grange in recognition of his outstanding services to the community and mankind.
He was a more than 50-year member of the National Funeral Directors Association, Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association and Southwestern Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association.
Mr. Greenlee was a 50-year member of Beallsville F&AM Lodge 237, Uniontown Lodge of Perfection, Consistory of the Valley of Pittsburgh and Syria Temple of Pittsburgh.
For more than 40 years, he had served as chairman of the board of directors of Milfred Cemetery Association. He was a former member of Clarksville Lions Club, Fredericktown Rotary Club and was a life member of East Beth Township Volunteer Fire Company, where he previously served as treasurer. He was a member of Fredericktown Area Chamber of Commerce, Nemacolin County Club and a member of Fredericktown United Methodist Church.
An avid sports fan, Mr. Greenlee was a longtime season ticket holder of the Pittsburgh Steelers and University of Pittsburgh Panthers football. He also enjoyed attending Pittsburgh Pirates baseball and Pittsburgh Penguins hockey games. He especially enjoyed spending time at his vacation home in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
On February 15, 1963, he married Eleanor Jean Santella, who died December 22, 2006.
Surviving are a son, John B. Greenlee of Fredericktown; a brother, Barrett G. Greenlee and wife Sara of Scenery Hill; a sister, Mary Jane Sertik and husband Tom of McMurray; and several nieces and nephews.
His father, John Bentley Greenlee, died May 22, 1967, and his mother, Mary Gates Greenlee, died September 11, 1997.
Friends will be received from 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday and 2 to 4 and 6 to 9 p.m. Monday in Greenlee Funeral Home, 42 Bank Street at Crawford Road, Fredericktown, where services will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, January 8, with the Rev. Paul Grunebach officiating. Interment will follow in Fredericktown Cemetery. The family suggests memorial contributions be made to Fredericktown Area Library, P.O. Box 62, Fredericktown, PA 15333; or Fredericktown United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 477, Fredericktown, PA 15333. F&AM Lodge 237 will conduct services at 6:30 p.m. Sunday in the funeral home. A guest book and personal condolences may be accessed at www.GreenleeFuneralHome.com.