Leonard R. DeLOACH Jr.

Family-Placed Death Notice

DeLOACH, Jr., Leonard R. Mr. Leonard R. DeLoach, Jr., passed away Friday, June 21, 2013, of natural causes at home in Atlanta, Georgia. A graveside service will be held on Tuesday, June 25, at 3 p.m. at Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs. Born October 13, 1921, in Montgomery, Alabama, Leonard was the first of Jennellie (McKay) and Leonard DeLoach's three sons. He spent most of his youth in Opelika, attended the University of Alabama and Auburn University, and graduated from the Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York. During World War II he served aboard ships in U. S. Naval convoys, which carried him around the world. After the war, he married Sadie Ann Arceneaux of Louisiana with whom he spent 60 years before her passing in 2005. They lived mostly in Atlanta where the couple devotedly raised three children. Leonard enjoyed a distinguished career in newspaper advertising, working for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Kelly Smith Company; Maloney, Regan and Schmitt; and Newhouse Newspapers. For 28 years he led the latter company's Southern Regional Office until his retirement in 1994. Leonard enjoyed playing golf and entertaining family and friends at the Atlanta Athletic Club of which he was a member for six decades. He was a jazz aficionado, and especially appreciated the music of the classic New Orleans, big band and swing eras. He was a parishioner of St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church in Sandy Springs. A resonantly optimistic soul, not a day passed when Leonard did not inspire or support someone he knew or loved with a joyful smile and thoughtful words of guidance, encouragement or consolation. A selfless man imbued with spiritual grace and great humility, he was not blind to his shortcomings or the fallibility of others; yet, Leonard never wavered in his belief in the innate goodness of humankind. His life stands as a manifest example of our finest latent potential. Survivors include daughter Julie Ann Dangel (Harry), Atlanta, GA; sons Douglass Thomas (Ellen), Atlanta, GA, and Donald Andrew (Susan), Chicago, IL; brothers William McKay (Marilyn), Tuscaloosa, AL, and James Douglas (Dallyn), Stockton, CA; grandchildren Laura Layne (Rob), Atlanta, GA; John Rainer (Brynna), Woodstock, GA; Michael, Patrick, Andrew, Brendan, Connor, Mary Grace and Griffin DeLoach, Chicago, IL; and great-grandchildren Page and Joy Layne, Atlanta, GA, and Abigail Rainer, Woodstock, GA. Surviving nieces and nephews include James DeLoach, Jr., Kathy Rogers, Beverly Baker, and Lynn Gregory. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made to St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church, 7171 Glenridge Drive, Sandy Springs, GA 30328.