Obituary of George Lewis Applegate

GEORGE LEWIS APPLEGATE George passed away peacefully on Saturday, December 4, 2010. He was 94 years young. George was born in Deer Lodge, Montana on August 5, 1916 to Leslie and Mattie Applegate, and was the youngest of 5 children. He spent a good part of his childhood playing and working on a big cattle ranch which was just outside of Deer Lodge. He graduated from Granite County High School in Philipsburg, Montana and went on to become an electrician. He worked with Milwaukee Railroad and later with Bahr Electric in Deer Lodge. Fishing, hunting, and camping in the high country were his greatest delights. On January 1, 1936 he married Meryl Hulben. They had two sons, Robert and Thomas. In the summer of 1956, they decided to pull up roots and move down to Santa Cruz, CA.; getting away from the cold, harsh winters in Montana. George worked as an electrician in large industrial plants, designing and servicing big conveyor lines. He also taught apprentice classes for electricians at Santa Cruz High School and Cabrillo College. His beloved wife Meryl passed away in January 1974, and his oldest son passed away in Peru in 1969. In February 1975, he married Margaret Spilker and shortly after they both retired and decided to travel throughout the US and Canada in their motor home many times, visiting family, with many fond memories of fishing trips taken along the way. Golf became another passion, and he was so proud of two holes in one. George was a 67 year member of IBEW, and 50 year member of the Masonic Order. He was a Past Master, a DeMoley Dad, and a Hiram Award recipient, as well as a Past Patron in OES. He leaves behind his wife, Margaret, son Tom (Jeanette), step-daughters Lorraine Ling (Michael), and Barbara Oliver (Mark), 6 grandchildren: Shelly Applegate, Lori Buguet (Larry), Kendra Oliver, Steven Oliver, Melecia Ling, Sonia Ling plus 4 great-grandchildren. A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, December 11, 2010 at the Congregational Church of Soquel, 4951 Soquel Drive, Soquel, CA 95073, beginning at 2 o'clock p.m. In lieu of flowers, a memorial gift may be made to Hospice of Santa Cruz County, 940 Disc Drive, Scotts Valley, Ca 95066, or to your favorite charity.