By Mandy Cooke
Lanny Lee Boden was born in Akron, Ohio on June 23, 1950 and stepped into eternity peacefully at home on November 16, 2020. He was one-of-a-kind, with his signature handlebar moustache, and touched the lives of so many people through his love of Christ, his bravery, his love of cars, and his sense of humor.
He grew up Ohio with his parents, Chester and Bernice Boden, and his brother, Larry. He enjoyed working on and driving cars in his teen years, graduating from Norton High School in 1968. He then attended Kentucky Christian College for a semester before joining the Navy during the Vietnam War. He served for 4 years, stationed in Jacksonville, Florida as an aviation electrician. While he was stationed there, one trip to the beach with Larry’s youth group from First Christian Church Orlando changed his life forever when he met a sweet little blonde named Melanie.
On September 28, 1973, Lanny took Melanie to be his wife and they started their life together in Jacksonville. He was granted an early release from the Navy because he accepted a public servant role as an Orlando Fire Department fireman and EMT. Through the OFD, he earned his college degree in Fire Science Technology from Valencia Community College. Life became a little more exciting when they were blessed with two children, Scott and Mandy. He enjoyed times when the family came to visit him at the fire house, complete with playing on fire trucks, sliding down fire poles, and watching TV with the other firefighters. He retired in 1990 with a medical disability, and then he focused his attention on another love: cars.
Lanny could be found most days under or inside a car. He enjoyed doing repairs for others from his garage at home, and he even made house calls for friends and family. While his niece and nephew were attending Florida Christian College, he was the go-to person if anyone needed repairs. He was affectionately adopted by many as “Uncle Lanny” due to his countless vehicle rescues for the students. He also had quite the following with the senior citizen crowd from church because he was knowledgeable and fair when he fixed cars.
Not only was he a gifted mechanic, he also was an antique car enthusiast. He was a member of the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA), along with other local car clubs. He had the honor of earning many awards with a variety of cars. His most well-known was the 1960 Chevrolet Impala, known as “Black Magic,” that earned Junior, Senior, and Preservation awards. He also earned his lifetime goal of 100 judging credits with AACA. He was a wealth of knowledge about anything with four wheels! In his last few years, he even enjoyed playing the role of chauffer for special events with antique cars from the Cole family.
The Boden family grew in 2003, when Mandy married Shawn Cooke, and again in 2005 with the marriage of Scott and Clancy. By far, however, his favorite additions to the family were the arrival of his two grandsons from Mandy and Shawn. James was born in 2005, and Nathan was born in 2008. He always told people, “If I had known how much fun grandkids would be, I would have had them first!” He adored spending time with the family for holiday dinners, vacations, trips to the beach, or even the odd adventure. He enjoyed taking his grandsons to Gatorland Zoo, on a helicopter ride, and to drive go-karts. He shared his love of cars with his kids with his version of a right-of-passage: the annual trip to Gainesville for the NHRA Gatornationals. His daughter joined him for only two trips, but his son accompanied him for over 20 years. His oldest grandson, James, was the most recent to join in the fun of watching drag racing with his beloved Pepaw.
Lanny had an incredible memory for details and information. He was one of the toughest Trivial Pursuit players in the family, a self-proclaimed “wealth of useless knowledge”. Anytime that someone in the family had a question about anything, he could usually answer it without having to consult Google!
He also had quite the sense of humor! He was always quick with a joke, with a twinkle in his eye and a hearty laugh. Practical jokes were common, especially when he was a firefighter, and he even enlisted the help of others to lovingly pick on his kids. You could find him in any room telling stories and laughing with anyone that was around him. His affection for hippos became the focus of many family jokes. For Nathan’s first Christmas, he decided that the baby “needed” a hippo for Christmas. Over the years, many more hippos have made their way into the family in different forms, like stuffed animals, statues, paintings, and even hippo-shaped gingerbread cookies. The most memorable was a special trip to Busch Gardens for Nathan’s birthday to see a live hippo together!
Throughout his life, Lanny’s relationship with Christ was at the center. This was evident in how he looked for ways to help people and encouraged others. Over the years, he had been a deacon, elder, Sunday School teacher, and mentor at the different churches he attended. He especially had a soft spot in his heart for the senior citizens. He loved being their Sunday school teacher, and he patiently listened to countless stories. He also became involved with his favorite mission, Family Ministries of Florida, where he served as a board member for 20 years. He loved sharing the stories of how Family Ministries was instrumental in caring for children with special needs and unique issues. He was most proud of the school and how they were able to cater learning paths for each individual student. He always said that he would rather invest in people than in money. We love Lanny, and we trust that God has surely said, “Well done, good and faithful servant! Come and share your master’s happiness!”
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to either First Christian Church Winter Park, 1140 South Lakemont Avenue, Winter Park, FL 32792, or Family Ministries of Florida, 131 New Legacy Drive, Seffner, FL 33584
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