Ballon

Charles "Jake" Ballon Jr., 82, of Butler died Sunday at the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Born Aug. 25, 1925, in Brady, W.Va., he was the son of Charles Sr. and the late Mary Hilovsky Ballon.

He was a 1943 graduate of Butler High School.

Mr. Ballon was a veteran of the Navy during both World War II and the Korean Conflict. He served as a boat mate in the Navy Amphibians.

He worked as a machinist at the former Pullman Standard Car Co. in Butler for more than 30 years until 1983, when the plant closed.

He was a member of American Legion Post 778 in Lyndora, and VFW Post 249 in Butler. He also enjoyed fishing, golfing and gardening.

His wife, Ida H. Neely Ballon, whom he married Oct. 16, 1945, preceded him in death on Nov. 9, 2005.

Surviving is a son, Kenneth P. Ballon and his wife, Sallie Ballon, of Sylvania, Ohio; two daughters, Patricia Beatty and her husband, John Beatty Sr., of Jensen Beach, Fla., and Linda Oesterling of Butler; a brother, Thomas Ballon and his wife, Kim Ballon, of Butler; six sisters, Mary Chuba and Margaret Rock of Lyndora, Dorothy Fitzpatrick and her husband, Richard Fitzpatrick, of Butler, Louise "Cookie" Michaels of South Carolina, Frances Sweesy and her husband, Dan Daurora, of Butler, and Karen Cihonski of Lyndora. Also surviving are 15 grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by a brother, Andrew Ballon, and three sisters, Ann Bronchak, Susan March and Rosemary Ballon.

<B>BALLON</B> — Friends of Charles "Jake" Ballon, Jr., who died Sunday, Sept. 9, 2007, will be received at the <B>Geibel Funeral Home</B>, 201 E. Cunningham St. in Butler from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday.Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the funeral home with the Rev. George Palick of St. Fidelis Roman Catholic Church in Lyndora officiating. Burial will follow at the Greenlawn Burial Estates.Graveside military honors will be accorded by members of American Legion Post 778 and VFW Post 249.Memorial Donations may be made to Butler County Visiting Nurses Association, 154 Hindman Road, Butler, PA 16001.