Obituary of Leonard Hood Ireland

Mr. Leonard Hood Ireland, 93, passed away peacefully after a short illness in Endicott, New York on 3 July 2018. He was predeceased by his cherished wife of 67 years, Grace Doris Ireland (Lindsay); his parents, Harold & Gladys Ireland of St. Catharines, Ontario; sister, Margaret (Ireland) Jacobson & brother, Graham Ireland. He is survived by his son, John & daughter-in-law Yvonne Ireland of Rochester, NY, daughter, Karen Ireland of Gallatin, TN, daughter, Elizabeth & son-in-law Marvin Turner of Kernersville, NC; much loved grandchildren, Andrew, Evan, Erin, Sean & Meredith and their spouses; and great grandchildren; Tyler & Jacob. Len was a proud veteran of the Royal Canadian Navy and served as Stoker 1st Class in Newfoundland during WWII until the war's end. Married shortly thereafter in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, he and Grace moved to Endwell in 1948 and became naturalized US citizens in 1954. During his career he worked as a tool & die maker at Universal Instruments and then at IBM in Owego, until his retirement in 1984. Len was troop leader for Boy Scout Troop 211 which met at Endwell United Methodist from 1962-1967 and earned the Year Round Camper Badge for the whole troop. In retirement he studied to earn his navigational Pilot's license from the US Power Squadron and enjoyed model ship building. He was known as the neighborhood fix-it man for his ability to repair just about anything. Len also spent many hours volunteering for the Town of Union Museum to restore artifacts, the most significant of which was a mosaic tile children's scene rescued from the chimney breast of the kindergarten room of Hooper School prior to demolition. He was a member of St. Andrew's Anglican Church, Endicott, NY. His memorial service is planned for Saturday, 21 July 2018 at 10 a.m. at St. Andrew's, 400 W. Wendell St., Endicott, NY with interment at Riverhurst Cemetery to follow. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the building fund for St. Andrew's.