Bickel Jr.

John A. Bickel Jr., 82, of Grove City died at 3:10 p.m. Friday at the Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Butler Township following a brief illness.

The son of John A. Bickel Sr. and Helen (McCallum) Bickel, he was born in Pittsburgh on March 3, 1927, before moving to Venango County at the age of 4.

He was a member of the Harmony United Presbyterian Church in Harrisville, where he was a former trustee and often drove the church bus for youth activities.

He retired in 1988 from Brauns Bread in Butler, where he had been a retail salesman since 1967. Previously, he was the branch manager of Star Bakery, formerly known as Hathaway Bakery, in Grove City. He began working in the bread and bakery business at the age of 14 at the former Ideal Bakery in Grove City.

After retirement, he was a bus driver for Grove City Bus Lines and Butler Motor Transit, as well as a mail driver for LadMac of Butler.

A graduate of Grove City High School, Bickel served in the Army infantry during World War II.

He enjoyed bowling, music, the Pittsburgh Steelers, NASCAR and spending time with his family. John and his wife both were active racing enthusiasts, and were instrumental in founding and building Mercer Speed Way. Bickel was a concession worker at Sharon Speed Way from 1992 to 2006, and he and his wife were ushers at Daytona Motor Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. He received numerous driving awards throughout his life.

He is survived by a daughter, Sue Anne Bickel Kennedy and her husband, Richard, of Daytona Beach, Fla.; a son, John A. "Jack" Bickel III and his wife, Lori, of Butler; two grandchildren, Amy Reese and her fiance, George Stiles, and Justine Reese, all of Butler; a brother, Glenn E. Bickel and his wife, Judy, of Grove City, as well as several nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Mabel E. (Frantz) Bickel, who he married June 5, 1948, and who died Nov. 14, 2002; two sisters, Ruth Baer and Margaret "Peg" Snyder, and a brother, Harold "Bud" Bickel.

<B>BICKEL</B> — Friends of John A. Bickel Jr., who died Friday, Nov. 27, 2009, will be received at the <B>CUNNINGHAM FUNERAL HOME</B>, 306 Bessemer Ave. in Grove City, from 4 to 9 p.m. Monday. Funeral services will be at the funeral home at 11 a.m. Tuesday with the Rev. Dr. John C. McElwain, training pastor with Coalition Christian Outreach, presiding. Burial will follow at Crestview Memorial Park in Grove City.