Glenna Smith, left, public affairs officer with the public affairs officer for the Veterans Affairs Sierra Nevada Health Care System, greet Jack Delaney on Dec. 10 after he returned from Pearl Harbor on an Honor Flight Nevada trip. Steve Ranson Photo
Minden resident and 20-year U.S. Navy sailor John ‘Jack’ Delaney will be laid to rest with full honors noon Jan. 10 at Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Fernley.
Delaney, 87, died Dec. 13 on the eighth anniversary of his wife Margaret’s death. He returned from his second Pearl Harbor trip with Honor Flight Nevada just three days prior on Dec. 10.
During the 2020 visit, USS Missouri curator Meghan Rathbun escorted Delaney, Korean War vet Ken Santor and several other visitors from Honor Flight Nevada to the operations room, the captain’s quarters, the sleeping area and dining.
While in the captain’s quarters, Delaney flipped through a ship’s yearbook and found his photo, another moment that caused him to reminisce about his service to his country.
Santor said Delaney seemed more reserved on the latest visit to Pearl Harbor, but his spirits were high. During the first trip, Santor said his friend walked everywhere. This time, he spent most of his time in a wheelchair. Nevertheless, Santor said they both still found the tour interesting and educational.
“He was very proud of the crew of the Big Mo,” Santor pointed out.
Delaney was a Navy corpsman with the Marines during the Vietnam War where he spent two tours.
“He got along with everyone, a truly good guy,” Santor said. “I will miss him.”
Honor Flight Nevada board member Laura Meaders, said after the 2020 trip to Pearl Harbor, he wanted to visit the Missouri again and sign his name in a book at the gift shop as a sailor on the Missouri.
“His bags were packed for over a month as he eagerly waited to see his ‘Mighty Mo’ for the last time,” Meaders said. “It was an honor to see him full of life as he toured the vessel and shared stories with his son, Tim, and Honor Flight Nevada. With his mission accomplished, he passed away days after returning home and eight years to the day of his belated wife Marge. That is beautifully bittersweet to everyone who knew the Delaneys.”
