MOUNT VERNON — Robert C. Cornelius, 84, of Mount Vernon died Aug. 17, 2009, at his residence.
He was born July 9, 1925, in Grand Island, Neb., to Hobart F. and Ellen G. (Urwiller) Cornelius. He was a U.S. Navy veteran, a member of the Owl Creek Baptist Church and the American Legion in Danville. He was a former Monroe Township Trustee. Robert retired from PPG and was a longtime farmer. He had also worked as a custodian for East School.
He is survived by his wife, Elda Cline-Cornelius, to whom he had been married 12 years; two daughters, Frances Allender of Mount Vernon and Margaret (Phil) Hunter of Mount Vernon; one son, Bernard (Tamara Pierson) Cornelius of Jacksonville, Fla.; three grandchildren, Stacey (Josh) Hurlow of Mount Vernon, Matthew (Jill) Hunter of Marengo and Army Sgt. Grant (Rita) Allender of Fort Hood, Texas; three great-grandchildren, Caleb and Brayden Hunter and Ethan Hurlow; three sisters, Dorothy Crouch of Mount Vernon, Dixie Guisinger and Joella Welsh, both of Jacksonville, Fla.; brother, Donald (Patty) Cornelius of Utica; two stepgranddaughters; four stepgreat-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
Besides his parents he was preceded in death by his first wife, Velma A. Cornelius, in 1990, whom he married on Nov. 11, 1949; and a son-in-law, H. Richard Allender, in 2008.
Funeral services will be held at the Dilley-Lasater Funeral Home on Thursday, Aug. 20, at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Robert Heizer officiating. Friends may call at the funeral home one hour prior to services. Burial with military honors conducted by the Knox County Joint Veterans Council will be in Liberty Chapel Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made in Robert’s memory to Hospice of Knox County, 17700 Coshocton Road, Mount Vernon, OH 43050. To share a memory or send a condolence to the Robert Cornelius family, please visit www.dilleylasater.com.
