Jon H. Arneson

Jon Harold Arneson, 87, died peacefully on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, at his residence in Staunton.

Born on February 5, 1938, in Washington, D.C., to the late Lillian (Krohn) and Henry Knute Arneson, Jon was a devoted family man who will be missed greatly by his loved ones and friends.

Jon lived in many places throughout the US while growing up, however, he considered Hudson, Wisconsin his hometown. He attended Hudson High School, moved and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School, Washington, D.C. He then attended American University in Washington, D.C., where he was on the swim team and received a bachelor’s degree in government and public administration. Through an Eastern Michigan University extension program in Arlington, he received his master’s degree in information security.

Jon served as adjunct professor in the graduate schools at both Eastern Michigan and George Washington University in Washington. He served his country with the National Guard and Coast Guard in the reserves and was a black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

His workforce experience began as postman with the US Post Office Department, after which he moved on to serve some thirty years with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) – twenty years at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland followed by 10 years at the Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida. He worked at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for a time after leaving Kennedy where he was retired from the US Government. He continued in the workforce, working with several contractors before completely retiring.

Jon and his immediate family lived in several places through the years. After moving from Silver Spring, Maryland, they resided in the Chesapeake Bay community of Deale, and then two different communities in the suburbs of Annapolis. They lived in five different locations in Florida before returning to Maryland and then Jon and Meredith retired to their home in Swoope, Virginia.

Jon’s retirement enabled him to spend more time with family, participate in church activities at Hebron Presbyterian Church in Staunton, Virginia, where he was a member and lifetime elder, serve the community, enjoy his all-time favorite sport of swimming, and engage in the care and maintenance of his home in Swoope, Virginia (heart of the beautiful Shenandoah Valley). For many years he and his family enjoyed life on or near bodies of water but the Valley between two mountain ranges was where he and Meredith enjoyed life, family and friends during their retirement years.

Jon was a dedicated husband and father and is survived by his sons, Erik B. Arneson and his wife, Sandy (Linn) Arneson of Charlotte, North Carolina, Jeffrey P. Arneson and his wife, Hiliary (Webb) Arneson of Jacksonville, Florida, and Dr. Brian A. Arneson, of Staunton, Virginia; his former daughter-in-law, Cindie (Gest) Arneson, of Staunton, Virginia; ten grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; his sister, Candy Arneson; as well as numerous nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his loving wife of more than sixty years, Meredith (Proctor) Arneson; his two older brothers, Henry Knute Arneson, Jr. and James Edward Arneson; his brothers-in-law, Frank Baker Proctor, Jr. and John Mathew Proctor; his sisters-in-law, Ruth (Carson) Proctor, Lois (Proctor) Parker, Melinda (Fox) Proctor, Janet (Bernard) Arneson, and Sharon Arneson; his former sister-in-law, Greta (Paulson) Arneson; and his former brother-in-law, James Parker.

A private celebration of life will be conducted at the Inn at MeadowCroft in Swoope, Virginia.

Memorials in Jon’s name may be made to the American Parkinson Disease Association (P.O. Box 61420, Staten Island, NY 10306).