Lebanon County PA Archives Obituaries.....Light, Walter Rank     February 8, 2008
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  Sharon S. Miller shabodeho@aol.com March 22, 2008, 1:30 pm
  
  Published in the Lebanon Daily News on 2/13/2008.  
  Light, Walter Rank    
   
   
  Walter Rank Light PALMYRA The long and well-lived life of Walter Rank Light, a 
  native of Palmyra, Lebanon County, came to a peaceful close on February 8, 
  2008. He will be sorely missed. Born December 27, 1911, Walter graduated in 
  1929 from Palmyra High School, where he was a three-sport star and charter 
  member of its Hall of Fame for outstanding athletic performance and achievement 
  in life. He received his college degree from Juniata College in 1933, where he 
  also excelled in football and track, competing as a member of his school's 
  championship team at the Penn Relays. While working for General Motors 
  Acceptance Corporation in Harrisburg after graduation, Walter had the good 
  fortune to meet Jean F. Wallower, whom he married on October 7, 1938, and who 
  preceded him in death after a deep and loving relationship of more than 65 
  years. Walter and Jean were an inspiration to and beloved by their family - 
  their three children, Barry and his wife, Miriam, of Fitchburg, Massachusetts; 
  Nancy who preceded him in death in September 2005, and her husband Richard 
  Calhoun of Litchfield Park, Arizona; and Terry and his wife Barbara, of 
  Lewisburg; then four grandchildren, Jean Ann (Calhoun) Arkwright and her 
  husband, Bradley, of Phoenix, Arizona, Daryl Calhoun and his wife, Michele, of 
  Gurnee, Illinois, Andrew Light and his wife, Kristin, of Wilmington, Delaware, 
  and Jonathan Light and his wife, Molly, of Philadelphia; and their three great 
  grandchildren, Heather and Nathan Arkwright and Ryan Calhoun. Walter was the 
  youngest and last surviving child of the ten offspring of A. Menno and 
  Elizabeth (Kreider) Light. He is survived by numerous relatives from the Light 
  and Kreider families. During World War II, Walter enlisted in the Navy in 1941 
  and served in the Pacific aboard a destroyer escort, the USS Cooner. After he 
  was honorably discharged with the rank of Captain, he worked at the 
  Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture before opening the insurance business 
  and income tax service that he maintained in his hometown until he retired. He 
  also served many years at the Tax Collector for the Borough of Palmyra and as a 
  member of the Board of Directors of the Valley Trust Bank. Walter and Jean 
  raised their family in the First Evangelical United Brethren (now Methodist) 
  Church of Palmyra, where they were faithful members for most of their married 
  life. Walter taught Sunday School classes there into his 80s. Walter wore his 
  Lions Club pin proudly for over fifty years and avidly served the organization 
  both as President and as foot soldier. He passed on his love of the democratic 
  process to those around him as he served the Republican Party in various 
  capacities. Not one to shy from an audience, he honed his public-speaking 
  skills as a member of the Toastmasters. He served the community as Secretary of 
  the Borough Council and as a member of the committee which built the original 
  Palmyra swimming pool. He and Jean avidly supported their children and 
  grandchildren with their presence and their enthusiasm wherever that took them. 
  Even after family had graduated and gone, they remained fixtures at Palmyra 
  High School events of all kinds. Walter was one of the eight founding members 
  of the Studebaker Hunting Club on the O'Day farm in the Pennsylvania Grand 
  Canyon between Slate Run and Cedar Run. He had a warehouse of great memories of 
  the times spent there fishing, hunting, and vacationing with his family. 
  Walter's fishing canoe shared space in his backyard on South Railroad Street 
  with an abundant vegetable garden, whose bounty he shared freely with others. 
  Known for his love of humor and willingness to entertain audiences small and 
  large, he is best remembered for "Foot Foot" and his unerring rendition of 
  the "pit viper". He and Jean were members of "The Gang", a close group of 
  kindred families, who shared uproarious clean fun and extended mutual care and 
  support to one another. This same jovial spirit and unflagging kind-heartedness 
  earned him the titles King of Hearts and Man of the Year at Outlook Pointe (now 
  Elomcroft) in Lewisburg, where he lived since 2004. A private, family burial 
  service will be held on Saturday, February 16, 2008, at the Gravel Hill 
  Cemetery. A Memorial Service open to all who wish to pay their respects to 
  Walter will then be conducted at 11 A.M. at the First United Methodist Church, 
  520 East Birch Street in Palmyra. A reception open to all will be held at the 
  Hometown Family Restaurant on Route 422 East of Palmyra. There will be a time 
  of visitation with the family after the service for those unable to attend the 
  reception. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to 
  the Palmyra Chapter of Lions International, P.O. Box 168, Palmyra, PA 17078-
  0168. Rothermel Funeral Home, Inc. is entrusted with funeral arrangements.  
  Published in the Lebanon Daily News on 2/13/2008.  
  
  
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