Francis S. McDermott, 84, of Golden Rod died Saturday, Feb. 1, 2014 at Ridgeview Elder Care and Rehabilitation Center.
Mr. McDermott was born July 18, 1929 in Lancaster, the son of Paul F. and Nora C. (Farrell) McDermott.
He retired as a master sergeant from the U.S. Air Force after 21 years of service. He served during the Korean War and Vietnam era. He was an honor guard for President John F. Kennedy at Brooks Air Force Base, San Antonio, TX during the dedication of the Aerospace School of Engineering. He was also a member of the Air Force Sergeants Association.
He was the first director of the Clearfield County Tax Claim Bureau. He worked in real estate title abstracting for 24 years.
He was a member of the St. Francis Catholic Church of Clearfield.
He was a life member of the Third Ward Hose Company. He was also a member of the Clearfield BPOE Lodge No. 540, where he was past exalted ruler and past district deputy of the North Central District. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus, Clearfield American Legion and Clearfield VFW. He was also one of the survivors of the Colonial Courtyard fire in June of 2013.
Mr. McDermott was an avid Penn State Football fan and attended numerous games.
He was the last member of his generation. He was preceded in death by his parents and his wife, Edith M. (Matthews) McDermott, whom he married Aug. 30, 1958 in Leicester, England and whom died Dec. 15, 2012; a brother, Paul LeRoy McDermott; and a sister, Mary Elizabeth McDermott.
He is survived by three children, Debra L. Pietrovito and her husband, John of Muncy, Paul A. McDermott and his wife, Betsey of Clearfield and Sandra E. Wills and her husband, James of Greenville SC; seven grandchildren, Shawn Pietrovito, Kyle Pietrovito and his wife, Christa, Patrick McDermott and his wife, Annie, Michael McDermott, Meagan McDermott, Matthew Wills and TJ Wills; a niece, Lisa Sutton; two nephews, Steven and Andrew Sutton; and a sister-in-law, Veronica Sutton.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be said at 10 a.m. Friday at the St. Francis Catholic Church of Clearfield with Msgr. H. Desmond McGee as celebrant. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery.
Military honors will be accorded at the cemetery by the Clearfield American Legion Post No. 6 and the VFW Post No. 1785 Honor Guard.
Friends will be received from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. Thursday at the Bennett & Houser Funeral Home Inc. The Elks will conduct a memorial service at 6:30 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Elks National Foundation, 301 N. Second St., Clearfield, PA 16830 or the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, Kansas 66675.
To send online tributes, please go to www.bennettandhouser.com or www.mem.com.