Henry Rust

1916 - 2015

Henry E. Rust

1916 - 2015

Henry E. Rust of Eugene passed away on February 24, 2015 at the age of 98. He was born in Dubuque, Iowa on March 25, 1916 to parents Henry F. and Anna (Dickman) Rust. He moved with his family at an early age to Lynden, Washington. From there the family moved to California and later back to Washington, where he graduated from Everett High School in 1934. During his childhood he enjoyed sports and music.

He won a contest for flying lessons that ignited his passion for flying airplanes. He earned his flight training under the Civil Pilot Training Program, graduating with commercial and instrument flight ratings. He joined the Navy during World War II, initially as a flight instructor, later as a transport pilot, and attained the rank of Lieutenant. Later he was manager of a flight operation on Paine Field and then chief pilot for the Atomic Energy Commission at the Hanford Project in the Tri-Cities. He then came to Eugene to be the corporate pilot for the Gonyea companies.

It was while he was in Tri-Cities that he met Marjorie Milenius. He married the love of his life in 1954. They had 3 children. He was active in the lives and activities of his immediate family, especially camping trips and swim meets. He was active in his church, and became the chair of the church endowment fund. He was an avid square dancer and also enjoyed round dancing. He chaired or assisted in hosting several square dance festivals. He was a member of the Eugene-Kakegawa Sister City group and became chair of the Eugene Sister City Commission. He made several trips to Japan, and hosted several Japanese dignitaries as part of his Sister City work. He was active in the foreign student program at the University of Oregon, welcoming incoming foreign students each year. He was on the board of the River Road Park District, serving as chairman for part of that time. He served on the Flight Technology Advisory Committee at LCC. After retiring, he and Marjorie travelled a great deal and had many memorable trips. They also had an interest in genealogy and tracked down a lot of family history. He also loved to cook and entertain.

He is survived by his children Coralie Burzynski (husband Mike), Robert Rust (wife Sue), and Judi Liechty (husband Mike), and 3 grandchildren. His wife preceded him in death.

He was a great husband, dad, and grandfather. He was a wonderful friend to many people, who in turn were good friends to him. He was always a gentleman, caring, compassionate. He had a good sense of humor and was playful. The world was a brighter place because of him. He will be greatly missed.

A short honor service will be held at Willamette National Cemetery at 11 AM on Tuesday March 3. A celebration of life service will be held at 2 PM on Wednesday March 4 at Trinity United Methodist Church, 440 Maxwell Road, Eugene. Donations to Trinity United Methodist Church can be made in his honor in lieu of flowers.

Arrangements entrusted to Musgrove Family Mortuary. Please access the obituary and you are invited to sign the guestbook at musgroves.com.