Lee Roy Mornout

Covington has lost a longtime fixture; Lee Roy Mornout, 84, passed from this life on July 14, 2014 at 6:15 AM at Presence United Samaritans Health Center in Danville, IL. God saw he was tired and ready to go; with that being said, we will tell you a little bit about him. Lee was born February 18, 1930 on a farm near Rob Roy, IN to Frank Mornout and Josephine Van Dame Mornout Kiser. He was the youngest of three; Lees older sister Margaret and brother, Ralph “Jack” Mornout. They stayed on the farm until Lee was 7, when the family moved to Covington. Lee resided there until his death. He attended Stone Bluff grade school and graduated from Covington High School in 1949. Due to a bout with Polio when he was a child, he was unable to serve in the Armed Forces; however, he was a member of the Indiana National Guard. He started his working life at The Mornout Service Station on the corner of Third and Pearl in Covington. He then worked for L.T. Dicks Ford Garage in Covington until 1955. From that point on he “labored” daily (according to Lee) at The General Electric Company in Danville until his retirement in 1987. Post retirement he worked for Greg Clingan Auctions and brought home many treasures. In 1948 or so, he met a tall, brunette beauty from Veedersburg, IN named, Ona Stonebraker. They married June 10, 1950 in Sterling, IN and stayed side by side until Onas death in 1999. To this union two children were born; Charles (Charlene) Mornout of Bismarck, IL and Chris (Tim) Landers of Danville, IL. Also, included in his brood are three grandchildren; Miles (Jana Snyder) Starkey, Justin (Sarah Pasco) Mornout and Erin (Alex) Dayvolt. Lee was also blessed with five great-grandchildren, Caleb, Kylee, Keegan, Karlee Starkey and Emmalyn Dayvolt. Oh, and we cannot forget his grand dog Earl and two great-granddogs Bella and Rocky. In his younger days, Lee was involved in racing. He was the owner and mechanic of many stock cars, keeping them in top form, for Jack Powell and Johnny Riteneour. This carried over to racing Go-Karts in the 1960s, where Lee won several trophies. He and Ona were members of the Illiana Auto Racing Fan Club and traveled throughout the country to attend races. Lee was a good guy and loved his family, enjoyed his coffee time out at Benjamins and did not meet too many meals he did not like. He is preceded in death by his parents; wife, Ona; sister Margaret Mornout Smith and Ralph “Jack” Mornout and nephew Kerry Mornout. He is survived by his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, a niece Mary Jo Potter of Georgetown, IL; sisters-in-law, Mary Lou Mornout of Veedersburg, IN. A service will be held at 7 PM Wednesday July 16, 2014 at Sunsets Covington Chapel, A life Celebration Home in Covington, IN. with Pastor Drew Mentzer officiating. Visitation will be held prior to the service from 4 - 7pm. at the funeral home. As per Lees wishes he will be cremated and interment will be at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please make contributions to The Covington Community Foundation or The Covington Senior Citizens. Envelopes will be available at the funeral home. Please join Lees family in sharing videos, pictures and memories of his life through his Tribute Wall at www.sunsetfuneralhome.com