Obituary for George O. Roos
George O. Roos, 86, a 40-year resident of Mentor-on-the-Lake and parishioner of St. Bede the Venerable Church, passed away Oct. 29, 2015, at Heartland of Mentor. He was born Aug. 10, 1929, in Philadelphia, Pa. George cheerfully and loyally devoted 22 years of his life to the Boy Scouts of America. Never a Scout himself, he first joined Pack 305 in Huntsville, Alabama, when his son was a Cub Scout, became an Assistant Scoutmaster in Troop 93 there, and remained long after his son earned the rank of Eagle in Ohio. George was the founding Cubmaster of Pack 383 in Mentor, for several years the Scoutmaster and Committee Chair of Troop 383, and established Catholic Committee on Scouting programs in the troop, which is sponsored by St. Bede''s. All during George''s Scouting career, his uppermost thoughts were always focused on "the boys." George received the Bronze Pelican and St. George emblems, in recognition of his outstanding service in the spiritual development of Catholic youth in the Cleveland diocese. He also received the Silver Beaver Award, for distinguished service to youth by the Greater Western Reserve Council. George made the famous Flexible Flyer sleds at S.L. Allen & Co. in Philadelphia, was a mechanical designer on the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo space missions at General Electric in Huntsville, and did design work at Roth Steel Co., Belcan Seed, and Astro Model in Eastlake, before retiring in 2002. A corporal and instructor in the U.S. Army, he was stationed at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO. He graduated from Northeast High School in Philadelphia in 1948, and played the accordion for the Joseph A. Ferko String Band in Philadelphia''s New Year''s Day Mummers Parades for many years. Survivors are his wife of 63 happy and blessed years, Anna Roos, aka ''Babe''; dear son, Stephen (Satsumi) Roos; loving sister, Catherine Roos; and his grandchildren, Raymond, Thomas, Marie and Hannah, on whom the sun rose and set. A funeral mass to celebrate George''s life of selfless service will be held 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Bede the Venerable Church, 9114 Lakeshore Blvd., Mentor, Fr. Tim Plavac officiating. (Please meet at church.) The family will receive friends 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the Brunner Sanden Deitrick Funeral Home & Cremation Center, 8466 Mentor Ave., Mentor. Interment will be at Western Reserve Memorial Gardens, Chesterland. In memory of George, memorial contributions may be made to the Boy Scouts of America.