Eugene J. Leto

Gene Leto, of Cocoa Beach, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, March 20, 2012 at Vitas Hospice on Merritt Island. He was 74 years old.

Gene was born on June 24, 1937 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He was raised in Gary, Indiana where he graduated from Tolleston High School in 1954. He attended Indiana University, Hillsdale College and Loyola University. Gene was a veteran of the United States Army, serving from 1955 through 1958; he was honorably discharged.

The aerospace industry brought him to Cocoa Beach; he was employed by the Catalytic Construction Company, building Launch Complexes 39A and 39B. As a Boeing employee, he was a quality control specialist for Apollo/Saturn V missions through Apollo 13. He used these skills to finish his career with the Georgia Power Company, being responsible for quality control on the constriction sites of both nuclear andfossil fired plants. Following his retirement in 1992, he returned to the Cocoa Beach area.

He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Marcie Lindstrom Leto; two sons, David Eugene of Lyons, Colorado and Brian Anthony (Theresa Pruitt) of Jackson, Georgia; sisters-in-law, Toniellen Reed Leto of Hobart, Indiana and Jan Lindstrom Wilcox (Michael) of Jackson, Michigan; a brother-in-law, Jon Erik Lindstrom (Sandi Kildee) of Traverse City, Michigan; a niece, Marcie Porter of Phoenix, Arizona; nephews, Mark Leto (Aimee Skalba) of Hobart, Kris Porter of Greenwood, South Carolina and Robert Parrott of Jackson, Michigan; and Gene was blessed with a grandson, Jacob Eugene of Jackson, Georgia; grandnephew, Ryan Leto of Hobart; and grandniece, Sydney Leto Hobart.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Pauline (Nicolosi) and Nat Leto; a brother, Salvatore; and sister, Grace; as well as his mother and father-in-law, Marcie (Matthews) and Clifford Lee Lindstrom.

Gene was a 43 year member of Canaveral Masonic Lodge, Azan Shrine, Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion and a lifetime member of the Missile and Space Pioneers. A lifelong admirer of antique cars, he visited museums here and abroad and was the proud owner of a 1957 Thunderbird.

A celebration of Gene's life will be held at a later date; those details will be announced in Florida Today.

You may sign the guestbook at www.Beckman-williamson.com