R. Vernon Pearson

Moline, Illinois R. Vernon Pearson, 86, of Moline, died Wednesday, September 1, 2004, in Genesis West Medical Center, Davenport. Services are 11:00 a.m. Saturday at First Congregational Church, Moline, with The Reverend Virginia Pych officiating. Burial in Moline Memorial Park will precede the funeral. Friends wishing to attend the interment are asked to meet at the church by 9:30 a.m. Saturday to join the procession to the cemetery. Moline American Legion Post #246 will present military honors at the cemetery. Visitation is 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at Trimble Funeral and Cremation Center, Moline. Memorials may be made to church, Arrowhead Ranch, American Heart Association or American Cancer Society. Ralph Vernon Pearson was born January 10, 1918, in Moline, the son of John A. and Anna (Swanson) Pearson. He graduated from Moline High School and Augustana College. He served in the U. S. Navy during WW II, during which he received five Battle Stars in the South Pacific Campaign and was Commanding Officer of LST-270. He married Mary Jane Nelson on March 27, 1943, in New York City. She died December 16, 1995. He was employed by Montgomery Elevator Company for 39 years, retiring as Vice President of Human Resources in 1985. He was a charter member and past president and past secretary of the Moline Exchange Club; a charter member of the Quad City Rotary Club and co-editor of the club's "Spoke" newsletter, a Paul Harris Fellow and Foundation Benefactor of Rotary International, a member of the Advisory Board of the Salvation Army, and a member of First Congregational Church, Moline, where he served on the Mission Board, Founder's Society of Augustana College, Short Hills Country Club, and National Association of Management Accountants. Vern is survived by a daughter and son-in-law, Melinda Jane Pearson and James K. Thomson of Davenport; two sons and a daughter-in-law, Randolph Vernon Pearson of Moline and Bradley Ira and Deon L. Pearson of Overland Park, Kansas; six grandchildren, Marnie Jane, Briana Leigh, and Hayley Marguerit
e Thomson, and Caulfield Brookings, Anders Vernon, and Blythe Isabel Pearson. He was preceded in death by two brothers, Harvey R. Pearson and J. Richard Pearson. Remembrances and condolences may be shared with the family at www.TrimbleFuneralHomes.com. END OF OBITUARY