Melvin Gauss' Obituary
Melvin W. Gauss, 81, of Clinton, IA died Friday, August 22, 2008 at his home in Clinton, IA. Memorial services will be held at the Clinton Chapel Snell-Zornig Funeral Homes & Crematory on Tuesday, August 26, 2008 at 10:30 AM. Visitation will be held at the Clinton Chapel Snell-Zornig on Monday; August 25, 2008 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Cremation will follow the visitation. Honorary pallbearers will be Tom Freund, Don Claseman, Stu Petersen, Jack Wilson and Clay Schuetzle. Burial of the cremains will be in the Clinton Lawn Cemetery. Melvin was born on January 22, 1927, in Belleville, NJ, the son of Edward C. and Anita (West) Gauss. He was a graduate of the Belleville, NJ High School and received his degree in mechanical engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, in 1951.Melvin was a WWII United States Army veteran serving in Okinawa, Japan. He married Jean Merrill on July 19, 1952 in Newark, NJ; she died May 12, 2000. He had been employed at E.I. du Pont de Nemours for 34 years, retiring in 1985 as Superintendent of Safety, Health and Environment. Melvin was a member of First Baptist Church, was a former member of the Clinton County Association of Retarded Citizens and was a co-founder and instrumental in starting the Skyline Center, He was on the board of directors of the Area Educational Agency, was a member of the Clinton Moose Lodge, was a Tax help volunteer with RSVP, was an avid golfer and loved dancing and shooting pool at the Erickson Center. Survivors include his daughter, Carol (Steven) Kupfer of Clinton, IA; grandsons, Joseph M. Kupfer, Kevin J. Kupfer and Thomas J. Kupfer all of Clinton and his special friend, Delores "Dee" Edwards of Clinton. In addition to his wife, he was preceded in death by his parents, 2 daughters, Jeanie and Marilyn and brother, Donald.
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