Merlin Wesley Tucker

Visitation will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday at Callahan-Edfast Mortuary, followed by a funeral service at 1 p.m. Burial will follow at Orchard Mesa Cemetery.

He was a railroad conductor.

Survivors include his wife, Gladys; one son, Steven James of Fruita; one daughter, Cheryl Ann Tucker Bennett of Jacksonville, Florida; two sisters, Onalee Horvath of Yuba City, California, and Lois Bruton of Escondido, California; five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Memorial contributions to HopeWest, 3090B North 12th St., Grand Junction 81506.

Merlin Wesley Tucker, 85, went to join family and friends in heaven June 29, 2016. Merlin was born in Olathe, Colorado on November 20, 1930 to Ezra E. and Helen A. Eggleston Tucker. He attended Fairview School, Austin, Colorado, and graduated from High School, Delta, Colorado in 1948. He served in the U. S. Army in Japan during the Korean War from 1948-1952. He married Gladys Pauline Cooper in 1953. In September 2016, they would have been married 63 years.

Merlin and Gladys have two children: Steve Tucker of Fruita and Cheryl Tucker Bennett (Tim) of Jacksonville, Florida; five grand-children: Torie Tucker of Fruita, Tanisha Tucker Kingsbury (Shannon) of Bellevue, Michigan, Cooper Grimes of Fruita, Katie Bennett of Denver and Tyler Bennett of Sheridan, Wyoming; and three great-grandchildren: Seth and Blake Kingsbury and Caleb Bennett. He is survived by two sisters: Onalee Tucker Horvath, Yuba City, California, and Lois Tucker Bruton, Escondido, California. Merlin’s parents and sister, Mary Jean Tucker Green, preceded him in death.

After his Army service, Merlin owned a Grand Junction gas station where he met Gladys. He later worked on the Manhattan Project as part of the Atom Bomb development at the Grand Junction A.E.C. compound. He worked for the D&RGW Railroad and retired as a Conductor. Merlin served on the United Transportation Workers Union Legislative Board and was President of Orchard Mesa Lions Club and Rio Grande Federal Credit Union Board.

Services will take place on Tuesday July 05, 2016 at Callahan Edfast Mortuary. Visitation begins at 11 a.m. and service will begin at 1 p.m. Burial to follow at Orchard Mesa Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations in Merlin’s name to HopeWest Hospice and Palliative Care (www.hopewestco.org). Friends and family may leave tributes at www.callahan-edfast.com/obituaries.