Barnard Fero obituary

FERO, Barnard Strong "Barney"

Born Dec. 13, 1917, in Houghton, NY, the last of 10 children of Rev. Albert David Fero and Pearl Winifred Strong. Died Oct. 23, 2014, in Austin, TX. He was married for 59 years to Evelyn Harriet Newman. She preceded him in death (1998), as did his youngest son, Kelly (2010). He is survived by sons Patrick (PA), Michael (CO), and Timothy (TX) and by his daughters-in-law and grand- and great-grandchildren.

Barney was a three-sport athlete in high school and played minor league baseball with farm teams for the Pittsburgh

Pirates and NY Dodgers. He played basketball with the Firestone Tire Co. semi-pro team. As a young man, he apprenticed as a tool and die sinker at Atlas Drop Forge in Michigan and worked in that field for 41 years. After marriage, he lived in MI, NY, OH, PA, and for nearly two decades managed automotive forge operations in Argentina and Mexico. He was a long-time member of the UAW-CIO Die Sinkers Union, even while in management. In retirement, he volunteered and held leadership posts with the AARP, Lions Club and S.A.L.T - Seniors and Law Enforcement Together. He was a voracious reader all his life, often reading two or three books at a time.

Donations in his memory may be made to the Sight Programs of the International Lions Club.

Published in Austin American-Statesman from Oct. 30 to Oct. 31, 2014