Wesley J. Stearns

Services for Wesley Joseph Stearns, 85, Junction City, KS will be held at Johnson Funeral Chapel,Wednesday, June 11, 2003,10:00 a.m.Father Frank Cody will officiate. Wes died June 6, 2003 at Geary Community Hospital. Visitation will be Tuesday, June 10, 2003, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Johnson Funeral Chapel. Burial will be at St. Mary's Cemetery, Junction City, KS. Memorials may be made to the Geary Community Health Care Foundation, P.O. Box 3015, Junction City, KS 66441 and/or St. Mary's Cemetery Foundation, c/o Harold Becker, 728 S. Eisenhower, Junction City, KS 66441. Wes was born January 13, 1918,Lansing,MI to Morris Lane and Ida (Andre) Stearns. Wes graduated from Grandville high school in Kent County, MI, he went to college at the
University of Boston, MA, Grand Rapids Community College where he also gained his private pilot's license, he also attended Washburn University in Topeka, KS. He married Mary Jane MacDonald, August 12, 1944 at Chicago, she preceded him in death January 26, 1989. Wes enlisted in the U S Army and served Army Air Corp during WWII, flying in northern Africa and southern Eastern Europe, including missions in support of the Tehran Summit with Roosevelt and Stalin in late 1943. He was honorably discharged in 1945 as a Captain. Wes had been a resident of Kansas since 1945, living in Topeka, Wichita and Dodge City,
he became a resident of Junction City in 1965. He began his career in finance at Securities Acceptance Corporation and its successor Associates Finance, where he worked in positions of increasing responsibility for 14 years. In 1965 he joined First National Bank of Junction City, heading the loan department. When the Fort Riley National Bank was formed in September, 1967, he became its executive vice president where he worked until retirement in 1981. He served as a board member of a subsidiary of Central National
Bank, board member of American Military Bank Association, Treasurer,Association of the U.S. Army, Central Kansas chapter (1969-1981). Survivors: Four Sons; Wesley Joseph Stearns, Jr. of Montgomery, TX, Douglas Jay Stearns of Berrien Springs, MI, Mike Stearns of Holly Springs, NC and James Craig Stearns of
Walnut Creek, CA, Two Daughters; Karen Stearns of Junction City, KS and Suzanne
Nelson of Chanhassen, MN, One Brother; Neal Stearns of Palo, MI, Six Grandchildren and Three Great-Grandchildren. Casket bearers: Wesley Joseph Stearns, Jr., Douglas Jay Stearns, Mike Stearns, James Craig Stearns, Brian Stearns and Michael Stearns. Preceded in Death: Parents, Spouse