Jack D. Deligans

Lab retiree Jack Deligans died Oct. 4 at his Livermore home. He was 94.

Deligans was born on Jan. 17, 1917 in Gowan Okla. to J.E. and Ruby Deligans.

He grew up one of four boys in Gowan and Hartshorne, Okla. He worked in his father’s garage, the first car repair shop in Latimore County, Okla., where he learned to drive the tow truck. As a result, the became the local school bus driver as a teenager.

Deligans received two engineering degrees from Oklahoma University. He worked as an engineer for the Department of the Navy, Bureau of Ships in Washington, D.C. , and then for LLNL.

He lived in Fairfax, Va. before moving with his family to Livermore in 1956. He married Lucretia Walls in 1941. They were married for 37 years, until her death in 1978.

One of his proudest moments was meeting President Jimmy Carter in the oval office as a member of the Southern Baptist Convention, National Brotherhood Commission.

After retiring from LLNL, he and his wife Marylynn went on a California Baptist Men’s mission trip to Samoa, where they helped build a church and to Fiji, where they were caught in a typhoon.

Jack was a deacon at Granada Baptist Church in Livermore for more than 30 years and was instrumental in building its current church building.

Jack is survived by his wife of 33 years, Marylynn Costen Bennett; his children from his first marriage, Jack D. Deligans, Jr. and his wife Sylvia; Jan Deligans; and Nina Deligans O'Donnell and her husband Jim; two granddaughters and one great-grandson. He also is survived by his brother, Bob Deligans and his wife Dorothy; stepdaughter, Karrie Bennett; three step-grandchildren and one step-great-grandson.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his first wife, Lucretia, and two brothers, Jean and Bill.

A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15 at Granada Baptist Church, 945 Concannon Blvd., Livermore. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Deligans’ name to the Granada Baptist Church.