Sons, Galen Ray

1941 - 2002  (61 years)

• Name	Sons, Galen Ray
  Birth	8 Sep 1941	Wayne County, Illinois   [1, 2]
  Gender	Male
  Reference Number	SONS.G001
  _FGRAVE	22422063
  Death	1 Dec 2002	Marion Memorial Hospital, Marion, Williamson County, Illinois   [1, 2]
  	Cause: Heart attack
  Funeral	5 Dec 2002	Frank & Bright Funeral Home, Flora, Clay County, Illinois   [1]
  Military Service	Specialist Fourth Class, 8th Infantry Division, Baumholder, Germany, United States Army  [1, 2]
  	Notes from Carl Wayne Gray: "Galen's obituary and his military headstone says he was a Vietnam Veteran. Galen and I were in the Army at the same time in Germany, but he did not serve in Vietnam. They should have read "Vietnam ERA Veteran"
  		Flag of the United States, 50 Stars (1960 - Present) This is the current flag of the United States. This flag became the official United States flag in 1960 when a star was added for the State of Hawaii. It replaced the short-lived 49-star flag (July 4, 1959 - July 3, 1960) honoring the State of Alaska. An Executive Order by President Eisenhower provided for the arrangement of the stars in nine…
  		United States Army Emblem Prior to the establishment of the "Department of the Army Emblem", there was no official display item to identify the Army. The Seal had traditionally been used to authenticate documents only and was not authorized for public display. In recognizing the need to provide a display item, the Secretary of the Army approved the emblem design as the…
  		United States Army
  		Specialist (SPC) (E4), United States Army (1985-2019) Initially, Specialist 3rd Class (SP3) (E-3), United States Army, (Mar 1955 - Sep 1959) Later, Specialist 4th Class (SP4) (E-4), United States Army, (Sep 1958 - 1985) Can manage other enlisted Soldiers of lower rank. Has served a minimum of two years and attended a specific training class to earn this promotion. People enlisting with a…
  		Specialist (Rank) Specialist is a military rank in some countries’ armed forces. In the United States Armed Forces, it is one of the four junior enlisted ranks in the U.S. Army, above private (PVT), private (PV2), and private first class and is equivalent in pay grade to corporal. In the U.S. Space Force it consists of the four junior enlisted ranks, prior to the…
  		United States Army Enlisted Rank Insignia
  		Military Service Ribbons, Galen Ray Sons (1941-2002) Contributed by Carl Wayne Gray
  		National Defense Service Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		National Defense Service Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		8th Infantry Division ("Pathfinder"), United States Army
  		8th Infantry Division ("Pathfinder"), United States Army
  Burial	5 Dec 2002	Elmwood Cemetery, Flora, Clay County, Illinois   [1, 2]
  	Funeral services were held at Frank and Bright Funeral Home with burial in the Elmwood Cemetery with Military Honors.
  		Headstone, Sons, Velma M. and Galen R.
  Person ID	I323	Carl Wayne Gray Research | Bugg - Patterson Alfred C. Bugg and Elizabeth 'Lizzie' Patterson Descendants, Graham - Hornick John Riley Graham and Rebecca Isabelle 'Bell' Hornick Descendants, Hornick - Baity Christopher Columbus Hornick and Rachel Baity Descendant, Luke - Fuller Thomas Luke and Drusella Cossal Fuller Descendants, Luke - Harrington William David Luke and Barbara Harrington Descendants, Maglone - Landers James Maglone and Mary Landers Descendants, McDowell - Maglone John William 'Will' McDowell and Margaret Maglone Descendants, Sons - Laird James Elias Sons Sr. and Ellen Laird Descendants
  Last Modified	30 Mar 2024

  
  

  Father	Sons, Beryl Wayne,   b. 20 Jan 1895, Illinois d. 14 Nov 1971 (Age 76 years)
  Mother	Howe, Lela,   b. 8 Aug 1905, Wayne County, Illinois d. 11 Feb 1960 (Age 54 years)
  Family ID	F356	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 1	McDowell, Betty Marie,   b. 3 Jun 1942, Noble, Richland County, Illinois d. 10 Aug 2007, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois (Age 65 years)
  Marriage	3 Jul 1959	Mount Zion Church, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois   [3]
  Age at Marriage	He : 17 years and 10 months - She : 17 years and 1 month.
  Children	+ 1. Living + 2. Living
  Family ID	F78	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 2	Living
  Family ID	F355	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 8 Sep 1941 - Wayne County, Illinois Marriage - 3 Jul 1959 - Mount Zion Church, Clay City, Clay County, Illinois Death - Cause: Heart attack - 1 Dec 2002 - Marion Memorial Hospital, Marion, Williamson County, Illinois Funeral - 5 Dec 2002 - Frank & Bright Funeral Home, Flora, Clay County, Illinois Burial - 5 Dec 2002 - Elmwood Cemetery, Flora, Clay County, Illinois  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Photos		Francis House, Ralph Bricker, Ron Bell, Galen Sons, Clayson McDowell holding Dave Bell From the Nella Grace (Luke) McDowell (1909-1998) collection Contributed by Carl Wayne Gray
  		Galen Sons, June Clevy, Greg Bell, Dave Bell, Rhonda Bell, and Rick Bell Contributed by Rhonda Renee' (Bell) Toy (1965-2018)

  
  

• Notes

  Galen R. Sons, 61, of Flora, died December 1, 2002, in Marion Memorial Hospital, Marion, IL. Mr. Sons was born September 8, 1941 in Wayne County, the son of Beryl W. and Lela Howe Sons. He married Velma Gill Hunt February 14, 1980 in Flora. Mr. Sons was an area Sears Service Technician and past owner/operator of the Sears Catalog Store in Flora. He was a member of the Oak Street Baptist Church, Flora Masonic Lodge #204, Belleville Consistory, Ainad Temple, Clay County Shrine club, Flora Police Commissioner, past Flora Civil Defense Member, Flora American Legion Post #14 and a U. S. Army - Vietnam Veteran. Survivors include his wife; two sons, Doug Sons and Rob Hunt; three daughters, Gayla Tanner, Marie Headlee, and Becky Payne; a brother, Lowell B. Sons; three sisters, Betty Coldwell, Donna Kay Taylor, and Patty Ann Thomas; and 16 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents. Funeral services were held at Frank and Bright Funeral Home with burial in the Elmwood Cemetery with Military Honors. (Published Clay County Advocate-Press)

  
  

• Sources

  [S460] https://www.findagrave.com, Obituary, Sons, Galen R., 61, (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/22422063/galen_r_sons), none. (Reliability: 2). [S461] https://www.findagrave.com, Headstone, Sons, Velma M. and Galen R., (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/22422063/galen_r_sons), none. (Reliability: 2). [S151] https://www.findagrave.com, Obituary, Lemons, Betty M., 65, (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/20945696/betty-marie-lemons) (Reliability: 2).