Veteran known for volunteering, activities
It was the end of 1944, and the lights in French restaurants and clubs - dimmed during the German occupation - were once again brightening nightlife as World War II wound to a close.
As Donald Delozier, a young GI from Swissvale, walked into a small cafe in Asnieres near Paris, the lights were bright enough for him to observe Ginette Bomea, the attractive young French woman who would become his war bride.
It was a romantic chapter in the life of Donald C. Delozier, who died from multiple health complications on Monday, July 30, 2001, in Beverly Healthcare, Monroeville. He was 77.
Within a year of their meeting, the couple were married in a military ceremony, and shortly after that she was sailing to America on an Italian liner with a thousand other war brides.
'I never had any doubts about coming to America,' Ginette Delozier said. 'I would have followed Don anywhere he wanted to go.
'And although I was an only child, my parents never objected to my leaving my home. They liked Don, and years later they would come to join us and stay.'
In the early days of their marriage, the Deloziers used French and English dictionaries to communicate with each other.
'I give my mother-in-law credit for helping me with the language,' she said. 'She was a good friend who would take me shopping with her. She even taught me how to count change.'
Born in Dauphin County, Mr. Delozier was an only child of the family of Clyde and Mae Griffith Delozier. The elder Delozier was a railroader who would eventually be assigned to Pittsburgh.
In 1942, following graduation from Swissvale High School, Mr. Delozier enlisted in the Army and was attached to the 442nd Corps of Engineers, which trained in Scotland and was dispatched to France and Germany.
Returning to the United States and his parents' home in Braddock Hills, Mr. Delozier was able to send for his bride. In the ensuing years, Mr. Delozier was employed as a molder for Acheson Manufacturing Co. in Rankin and later for Westinghouse Air Brake Corp.
'Oh, like any other couple, we had our ups and downs,' Mrs. Delozier said.
'Don was a good worker. When my parents came to the United States in 1950 to live near us in North Braddock, Don greeted them with open arms. My father, who is now 101 years old, considered Don his true friend.'
In the years following his retirement, Mr. Delozier and his wife were volunteers at the Eastern Area Adult Services.
'We visited the hospitals, took older people to their doctor appointments and we'd also shop for them,' she said.
'Don was an active man. He was a member of the Moose, Elks and several military organizations.'
Mr. Delozier is survived by his wife, Ginette Bomea Delozier; a son, Donald A. Delozier of York, Maine; daughters, Donna Lee Irvin of North Braddock and Debra M. Strut of Rankin; six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
He was also the brother of Helene Elliott of New Alexandria, Eileen Davis of Derry and Barbara Jones of Lake Tahoe, Calif., and the late Ronald Delozier.
Friends may call from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. today at the Patrick T. Lanigan Funeral Home, 700 Linden Ave., East Pittsburgh. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Thursday at St. William Church of Holy Cross Parish.
