Roy Dale Gilliom

Roy Dale Gilliom of Fort Wayne, Indiana left this earth on January 9, 2025 following complications from an acute spinal injury. Roy was born on May 14,1927, in Berne, Indiana to Clifton and Viola (Sprunger) Gilliom. He graduated from Berne High School in 1945 and graduated from Bluffton College in Bluffton, Ohio. He served in the US Army during World War 2.

Roy started to date his college sweetheart after a mismatched Sadie’s Hawkins event. He moved to Chicago and following graduation, he started his career with the YMCA while Mary continued her education nearby in Valparaiso. He married Mary Burkholder in 1952, and they honeymooned at a YMCA camp near Madison WI. He was the Associate Director and Interim CEO of the YMCA in Saginaw MI, CEO at the Blue Water YMCA in Port Huron MI, and was the Executive Director for the metropolitan Fort Wayne YMCA until his retirement. Roy believed in the global mission of the YMCA “to empower young people and communities to create a world that is equitable, sustainable, just and inclusive.”

Roy and Mary have been active and faithful members of Plymouth Congregational UCC for over 50 years. Roy served on the Benevolence Committee visiting church members who were in the hospital, nursing homes, or unable to travel. He also served on financial committees to reorganize the church budget, distribute scholarships and fund various charities. Roy and Mary were recently honored by the church for their benevolent contributions and service to the church over the years.

Roy never knew a stranger as he had a curiosity and interest in all people. He was a man of integrity, steadfast in his beliefs, and concerned about the world’s unrest. He would talk about current events, politics, and sports … local, college and professional. He was a loving and active father, grandfather and great grandfather. He will always be around in the stories we tell, the memories we keep, and in the way we live our lives with honesty, calmness, faith, love and respect for all people, and the character he modeled to us for our entire lives. May he rest in peace and continue to live in the hearts and souls of all the lives he touched.

He is survived by his wife of 72 years, Mary (Burkholder) Gilliom. Roy and Mary have 5 children: Deborah Gilliom, Todd (Vicki) Gilliom, Eric Gilliom, Lisa Gilliom and Nancy Gilliom (Heidi Wasson). He is also survived by 9 grandchildren: Zane Seal (Jackie Short), Alaina (Joe) Patrick, Christina Tatara (Joost Rietdijk), Carla (Caleb) Dutton, Louis (Courtney) Seal, Gabrielle (Eric) Foley, Jim (Sarah) Gilliom, Anna Tatara (Nick Montan), Jeremy Tatara (José Salazar). Roy and Mary are also blessed with 9 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his youngest sister Ruth Bauman and many nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Clifton and Viola, his brother Laverne (Anna Jane) Gilliom, and his sister Elaine (Les Rich).

Memorial Gathering will be on Saturday, January 18, 2025 from 10:00-11:30 am followed by a Memorial Service at 11:30 am at Plymouth United Church of Christ on 501 W. Berry St, Ft. Wayne IN.

Please join the family for a light lunch in the Folsom Room following the service.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to YMCA World Service

www.ymca.org.

Roy will be interned at Greenlawn Memorial Park at a later date.