Jay C. McGlon

Our community sadly lost a pillar on Thursday, April 4th 2019, when Jay C. McGlon passed away after a brief illness. He was at the Hospice House surrounded by his loving children. Jay of Tallahassee, Florida was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 62 years, Beulah. Born in 1927 in Jacksonville, Jay was a 7th generation Floridian. At the age of 16, in order to help the war effort, Jay attended Aviation Electronics School in Atlanta. He then worked at Betchel-McCone in Birmingham, Alabama modifying and retro fitting B-Bombers. During his time in the Navy he was assigned to the Naval Air Transport Service at the Airbase in Oakland California. Jay was a veteran of WWII when he attended the University of Florida, he soon met and married the love of his life, Beulah Marie Wilson. In 1950 he began working for Eastern Airlines in Atlanta, soon after he was transferred to Miami where he and Beulah continued to grow their family. He handled personnel administration as well as the overall airline operations. He worked closely with the airport managers throughout the east and mid-west. The highlight of his long service with Eastern was working closely with Captain Eddie Rickenbacker, the WWI 'Ace of Aces" fighter pilot, and CEO of Eastern. His many community activities included speaking before various civic organizations throughout Dade County about Americanism versus the threat of Communism. Jay lead the United Way Campaign to their highest donation level which earned him the Eastern Presidential Citation for Community Service. It was in the early 1960's that Jay became the Dade County Republican nominee for the U.S. Congress seat in South Florida. His extensive management and personnel experience lead to his appointment by Governor Claude Kirk and the State Cabinet where he was appointed to implement and administer the Career Service System covering more than 80% of all State of Florida employees and hence moved his family to Tallahassee to become the First State Personnel Director. In 1973, Jay returned to aviation as the Senior Vice President and General Manager for the European Operations of Modern Air Transport, relocating his family to Berlin, Germany. After a couple of years filled with adventure and travel, Jay brought his family back to Tallahassee to join the Public Service Commission. In 1976, he was promoted to Deputy Executive Director, a position he held until his retirement in 1994. His legacy will live on in the hearts and minds of everyone he interacted with. As a member of First Baptist Church in Tallahassee for over 50 years, he shared his love of the Lord with not only his family, but all that knew and worshipped with him. Jay loved and adored his family and friends with all his heart.

Jay was preceded in death by his parents, Jesse and LaVerne Weeks McGlon; his daughter, Vicki Neal McGlon and his sister, Mary Catherine McGlon Pace (Jack). He is survived by his brother, James Edward "Buddy" McGlon (Jane); son, Mike McGlon (Rita); daughter, Connie Marie McGlon of Tallahassee, Melanie Schrowang (John) of Tallahassee; grandchildren, Jennifer McGlon, Allison McGlon Varga, Tyler Ketterman, Chelsea McGlon Webster, Dante McGlon Erba, Andrew Schrowang, Spencer Schrowang, Austin Schrowang, Sophie Schrowang and 5 great-grandchildren.

A service to celebrate his life will be held at 11 AM on Wednesday, April 10, 2019, at the Chapel at First Baptist Church, 108 W College Avenue, Tallahassee, FL. Entombment with military honors will follow at MeadowWood Memorial Park, 700 Timberlane Rd, Tallahassee, FL.