JACQUES GILBERT DELAURIER

Jacques Gilbert DeLaurier, 91, leaves his wife of 66 years, Nancy, sons, Bruce and Peter, daughters, Jane and Julie, 12 grandchildren and six great grandchildren. He passed away June 5, 2012. Jacques was born in Detroit, Mich., in 1921. His father abandoned the family when Jacques was five, and his mother, unable to care for her children, put Jacques and his sister, Barbara, in Detroit's Protestant Orphan Home. At 15, Jacques joined the Civilian Military Training Corps (CMTC), and later enlisted in the US Army as America entered World War II. He served overseas in Assam, India, servicing the fighter planes that protected bombing runs against the Japanese over "the hump" (the Himalayan Mountains) into China. After three dates stateside, Jacques and Nancy Jane Gibbon furthered their relationship with a rich exchange of letters and photos. Following the war's end, in 1946, Jacques and Nancy married in New York City, after just a few minutes of reunion, as Jacques was soon due back at base. The newlyweds moved to Michigan, Nancy leaving her master's program in Art History at New York University. With the GI Bill, Jacques returned to the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor to complete his studies which he began before the war. Both Jacques and Nancy received teaching certificates, and Jacques earned a business degree as well. After one semester of teaching, Jacques became deeply involved in Democratic Party politics, and soon was appointed Executive Secretary to U.S. Senator Blair Moody. After Moody lost the next election, Jacques was appointed by Gov. G. Mennan Williams as Director of the Office of Hospital Survey and Construction -- responsible for selection of hospital sites across the state and the allocation of federal funds for their construction. With a growing family, Jacques decided to accept an offer from his father- in-law to join his wholesale lumber company in Kansas City. Jacques' presence at the lumber company bolstered its reputation and secured its financial viability. The family soon grew to four children. Jacques became a squash racquets enthusiast, playing first at the YMCA, then at the Pembroke Country Day School courts and eventually as a member of Kansas City's University Club. He was a Midwest squash racquets masters champion. The DeLauriers were long-time members of the Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, where both Jacques and Nancy taught church school. They later moved to St. Paul's Episcopal congregation. In the 1970s, the DeLauriers were active in their community, Eastwood Hills, battling "white flight" -- ensuring that new African-American neighbors were welcomed and fully engaged in their community, while counteracting the fears of their white neighbors spread by red-lining realtors. The result is one of the few harmoniously integrated neighborhoods in the Kansas City area. A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 9, at the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer at 10 a.m. Saturday, 7110 NW Missouri Route 9, Kansas City, MO 64152-2930, reception to follow. All friends are welcome. In his memory, the family suggests contributions to the Democratic National Committee www.democrats.org, or the Volunteer Caregiver Support Program of the Southern Arizona Veterans Administration http://www.tucson.va.gov/giving/index .asp