Ernest Ralph Gardner Sr.

Ernest Ralph Gardner, Sr., 87, loving and much-loved husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, uncle, and fisherman, passed away on Tuesday (December 2, 2014) at Southeastern Ohio Regional Medical Center, in Cambridge, Ohio. Ernie (called June by his parents and Gus by his childhood friends) was born on June 3rd, 1927, oldest son of Ernest and Martha Elizabeth (Hare) Gardner, in Beaver, Pennsylvania. He attended Beaver County Schools. His high school years were during World War II; he graduated in the Beaver High School class of 1945. While in high school, Ernest played clarinet, and alto and tenor saxophone in the orchestra, concert, and marching bands. His Aunt Grace Harmon gave him his first clarinet. He helped organize a dance band called "The Blue Flames," named for the Woody Herman Band's theme song, Blue Flame. The band played high school dances, proms, war bond sales events, and at the USO in Pittsburgh. Ernie enlisted in the Army on October 21, 1944, and entered the U.S. Army Air Force on July 6, 1945. He began basic training at Keesler Field (Biloxi, Mississippi) then was relocated to Buckley Field (Denver, Colorado) for Military Police training. From Denver, after a short leave, he was assigned to the 5th Air Force in Tokyo, then to Nagoya, Japan, where he was stationed from April through November 1946. While at Nagoya, Ernie was granted a transfer to the 748th Army Air Force Band. He played clarinet in the marching band and tenor saxophone in the dance band for enlisted men and officers club groups. After his tour of duty, he was sent back to the United States and discharged as a corporal in December 1946. Ernie attended Geneva College, in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, beginning in January 1947. He graduated in June 1951 with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering. During this period, he played tenor sax and clarinet with the Eddie Frazier Orchestra in the Beaver Valley. He also played with several small combos and the Vic Maybray Orchestra. He studied saxophone and music arranging with Max Adkins, director of the Stanley Theatre stage band in Pittsburgh. Soon after returning from the service, Ernie met Emma Jean Wilson. Ernie and Emma Jean were married on June 30, 1949 at the First Presbyterian Church, New Brighton. Ernie began employment with the Natural Gas Company of West Virginia during February 1951, and was assigned to the Salem, Ohio District Office as Industrial Engineer. Emma Jean and Ernie lived in Lisbon, Ohio (near Salem) from 1951 to 1959. During this period, two sons, Ernest R. Jr. and Jeffrey, and a daughter, Laurie, were born. The family moved to Wintersville, Ohio in April 1959 when Ernie was made Industrial Sales Manager for Ohio Valley Gas Company in nearby Steubenville, Ohio. In September 1965, Ernie was promoted to District Industrial Sales Manager for the Eastern District of Columbia Gas of Ohio, and the family moved to Cambridge, Ohio. In 1973, Ernie was promoted to District Marketing Manager, and in 1976, he received the Hall of Flame award from the American Gas Association, in recognition for his American Society of Mechanical Engineers committee work, for preparing and delivering technical papers, and for lecturing at training schools. He entered graduate school at Ohio University in 1979, and earned an Executive Master of Business Administration degree in June 1981. Ernie retired from Columbia Gas on April 1, 1986, after 35 years of service. During his retirement, Ernie remained active in music, playing reed instruments in dance, concert, and community bands (Dick Simcox Band, Cambridge City Band) in the Cambridge-Zanesville, Ohio area. His other interests included history and genealogy, flower and vegetable gardening, fishing trips to Wolfe Lake (Westport, Ontario, Canada), and babysitting their grandchildren. Between 1988 and 2006, Ernie and Emma Jean spent winters in the South, primarily in Rockport, Texas and Orange Beach, Alabama. Ernie was raised a Master Mason while living in Lisbon, Ohio in 1953 and became a member of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite (Valley of Cambridge) Masons in 1989. He was very active in his church, Unity (formerly Westminster) Presbyterian Church, in Cambridge, as an Elder and Deacon. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife of 64 years, Emma Jean Gardner, who died on June 18, 2013, and a brother, Byron Thomas Gardner. He is survived by two sons: Ernest R. "Skip" (and Vickie) Gardner, Jr. of Cambridge and Jeffrey W. (and JoLee) Gardner of Jacksonville, FL; a daughter, Laurie D. (and Jeff) Tucker, of New Concord; three brothers: Donald J. (and Kay) Gardner of Fairview, NC and Savannah, GA; Joseph C. "Chuck" (and Carol) Gardner of Sinking Spring, PA; and Calvin L. Gardner of St. Mary's, PA; five grandchildren: Amber Hamilton of New Concord; Curtis Figgins of Stanhope, NJ; Chad E. Gardner of Vienna, WV; Jessica L. (and Nick) Daniels of Dover; and Rev. Hannah Tucker of Tiffin; a great-grandchild, Alexandria L. Hamilton of New Concord; and numerous nieces, nephews, grand nieces and grand nephews. Dad: We love you and miss you. You and Mom will always be in our hearts. Visitation will be held Friday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Thorn-Black Funeral Home, Cambridge, where funeral services will be held Saturday (December 6, 2014) at 11 a.m. with Rev. Jeffrey Bergeson officiating. Entombment will be at the Northwood Cemetery Mausoleum, Cambridge. As an expression of sympathy, the family requests that memorial contributions in Ernie's name be made to one of the following organizations: 1) Unity Presbyterian Church, 130 N 7th St, Cambridge OH 43725; or 2) Guernsey County Senior Citizens Center Inc., 1022 Carlisle Ave, Cambridge OH 43725.