L.J. (Lee) Lakes, 91, of Tucson, AZ, a former resident of and business owner in Bluffton, Indiana died of complications from cancer December 8, 2015. Born on September 28, 1924, he married Edith Rose Reichter on April 27, 1947.
Lee founded and operated Lakes Engineering and Manufacturing Company in Bluffton after moving there from Ohio to join Franklin Electric as a designer.
Lakes was a Marine and served in active combat as a gunner aboard the Attack Troop Transport U.S.S. Republic in the South Pacific during World War ll. He was sent back to San Diego near the end of the war to train and lead soldiers in the attack on the Japanese Homeland which was canceled due to the ending of the war. One of Lee's favorite jokes was that the Japanese heard he was coming back and surrendered.
Lee was an active member of the Elk's Club, the Lions Club and the VFW. He is survived by his son's Kenneth and Ross, two daughters, Lena Moser and Marsha Matyas, six grandchildren and nine great grandchildren.
Lee accepted Christ as his personal savior, so he is currently living in heaven with his wife Edith (Reichter) Lakes and their oldest son Jerome.
