Homer D. Lovelace

Homer D. Lovelace passed away on Friday, April 29, 2011, at his home with his family by his side. His peaceful passing from this world into the next showed those present the power of the Scriptures’ declaration: “Death is swallowed up by victory; thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Cor 15:57)

Born March 29, 1932, in Okmulgee, OK, HD graduated from Bixby High School in May 1949. He joined the National Guard on December 19th, 1949 and transferred to active service on September 1st, 1950. HD earned the rank of Corporal, serving as a Communication Chief and Machine Gun Crew Chief with the 45th Infantry Division. He was discharged with Honorable service on December 18th 1952 and earned medals for Army Occupation (Japan), Korean Service with one Bronze Campaign Star, and UN Service, as well as a Combat Infantry Badge.

Upon discharge, HD enrolled as a student at Oklahoma A&M, which later became Okla. State University. There, he met Ruby Smith and they were married in 1954. HD put his own education on hold and worked at Douglas Aircraft in Tulsa while Ruby completed her B.S. Once she graduated and was able to work full-time, HD returned to OSU where he earned both a B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering.

After graduation, HD worked for Collins Radio, Texas Instruments, Halliburton and Ft. Bend ISD. One of his most significant accomplishments was designing and developing a communications system for NASA which was installed and used on Apollo 13.

HD and Ruby were married for 57 years raising three daughters and two sons. In their retirement, they took on the responsibility of raising one of their grandsons. HD was involved in various churches, serving as deacon for several years. At a young age, his mother began taking him to church and teaching him the Bible. When he was in high school he trusted Christ as his Savior. As an adult, he was a student of the Bible, challenging his Sunday School class every week to get to know God by reading and studying the Bible for themselves, living into II Timothy 2:15, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

His passions were camping and coaching. The passion for camping took them on many family vacations throughout Texas, Washington D.C., Alaska and many other places. The passion for sports and coaching lead him to coach many teams for his children as they were growing up. In retirement, he mentored his son-in-law’s, while coaching his grandsons in basketball. They learned many lessons which could be translated into daily life.

He is survived by his wife, Ruby, his children and their spouses, Bob and Debra Tolson, Pat and Sonya Stone, David and Dana Mennen, John Lovelace, Mark Lovelace, and 15 grandchildren; also, a brother and sister, nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews, all in California. He leaves behind many family and friends who rejoice in his victory:

“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world -our faith.” (I John 5:4)