GEORGE WILLIAM SIERANT

86, died at home on Friday, August 10, 2007. Beloved husband of 55 years of the late Betty Marie Sierant (nee Hibblen) Mr. Sierant is sur- vived by his children, George W. Sierant Jr., Chris Sierant and his wife Diane, Suzette Machuta and her husband Max and Jeannemarie Sierant and her partner Manon Kavesky, his grandchildren, George J. Sierant, Brian Sierant, Danielle Machuta, Melissa Machuta, Michael Sierant, Stephen Sierant, Michelle Sierant, and his great grandchild, George W. Sierant III. George was a passionate man---deeply devoted to his wife and family, committed to his profession, dedicated to the church, and an ardent supporter equal rights and progressive politics. He will be missed. During George's 34 years as engineer at General Motors, he was responsible for many important vehicle safety innovations. He invented the first viable rear-facing child safety seat which dramatically improved children's chances of surviving car accidents. Later in his career he developed the Safety Suggestion Program which encouraged and rewarded employees for contributing ideas to improve safety and save energy. Before his career at GM, he taught engineering students at Lawrence Institute of Technology. He is recognized as a notable Lawrence Tech alumnus, ME, 1947. He was a founding parishioner of St. Ives Catholic Church in Southfield. As an advocate of equal rights, he and his wife, Betty, were active members of Focus Hope. He was a veteran of WWII, serving honorably as 1st Lieutenant in the U.S. Army, Corp of Engineers. The family is grateful to Jannie Manning for her dedicated care of their father during his final weeks. Visitation will be held on Monday, August 13th from 2-8 p.m. at A. J. Desmond & Sons, 32515 Woodward Ave. (Vasu, Rodgers & Connell Chapel) Royal Oak. Funeral mass will be held on Tuesday, August 14th, 10 a.m., Church of St. Alan, 2345 Coolidge Hwy., Troy. Visitation begins at church at 9:30 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Lawrence Tech in honor of George W. Sierant, c/o Office of University Advancement, 21000 West 10 Mile, Southfield, MI 48075. View obituary and share memories at www.DesmondFuneralHome.com