REV. GEORGE H. BORNEMAN – Friend of the Homeless
Born in Elkhart, Indiana, to Zella (Howard) and George O. Borneman, on February 17, 1915, George Howard Borneman was the oldest of four children, followed by his sister Kathryn and his brothers William and John.
He grew up in Elkhart watching the New York Central trains that passed through town, dreaming of moving to a big city like the salesmen he saw who got off those trains between New York City and Chicago, in order to make phone calls. With his boyhood cousins and friends, he built a small "fort" along the banks of the St. Joseph River in Elkhart, and again dreamed of moving to the "action".
He attended Hanover College and the University of Michigan, graduating from Michigan in 1937 with a B.A. degree in economics. While in college, he joined the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and recently was awarded a plaque to honor his 70 years of membership. He was quite proud of that achievement.
He married Henrietta Simpson on October 21, 1939, in New York City, at the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church. They had met at the University of Michigan when they went on a blind date where George was paired with another woman and Henrietta with another man. Because Henrietta had grown up in New York City, they married there. Her aunt, who had helped to raise Henrietta, threatened to boycott the wedding but relented, in the end.
After living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, for a while, George worked at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital (now called New York Presbyterian Hospital) in New York City, where he once met Edna St. Vincent Millay, the poet. She would order bottles of whiskey to be brought to her room and he took those calls. At that time, apparently, alcohol was allowed in hospitals!
During World War II, he tried unsuccessfully to enlist in the US Army. After being rejected because of his poor eyesight, he enlisted in the US Navy in 1943, and shortly afterward, his first child, Janet was born while he was overseas. He served as a pharmacist's mate in the Navy, and most of his service was spent on the island of Tinian, in the South Pacific. He had vivid memories of that time and talked often about the Enola Gay airplane which was stored there for a while, prior to its dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. He and his buddies knew that there was some large-scale secret to the building on Tinian that housed the Enola Gay, but they didn't know the full story until after that bomb had been dropped.
After the war, he had to serve an additional six months, because not everyone was sent home immediately, but once released, he returned to Elkhart where he worked for American Coating Mills Company and lived with his wife and child, near all of his relatives. He and Henrietta bought a small house on Arcade Avenue.
In 1948, his great opportunity occurred and he was transferred to Chicago by the American Coating Mills Company, later the Robert Gair Company. He moved his family to La Grange Park, Illinois, because its school system impressed him. He enjoyed working in the Board of Trade Building in Chicago, in human relations, and he often went downtown to work on Saturdays, just for the excitement of going back into the city.
His second child, Nancy, was born in 1948 and it was his great delight to be at the hospital when this event occurred. He was always a very good father.
In July, 1955, his life changed radically when his wife Henrietta was killed in a plane crash at Midway Airport. Both of his daughters survived that accident and, in order to be nearer to them and to raise them himself, he left his job in Chicago and found work nearby as an administrative assistant at the First Congregational Church of Western Springs, Illinois. During this time, he enrolled in and began to attend classes at the North Central Theological Seminary in Naperville, Illinois.
On June 25, 1957, he married Jean M. McKenney and became the father of three more children, Mary Louise, Thomas, and Anne Marie. Jean had been the church secretary at the First Presbyterian Church of La Grange, where George had been a member since moving to Illinois. As a Deacon and an Elder in that church, he got to know Jean, and their marriage lasted 51 years, until his recent death.
In the fall of 1962, he was ordained as a Presbyterian minister and became the assistant minister at the Yorkfield Presbyterian Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. At this time, GB and Jean moved to Elmhurst.
His real "calling" came when he became the director of the Chicago Christian Industrial League in Chicago. There he worked with homeless people who had lost their way and helped them to connect with society by providing clothing, food, job information, and counseling. He worked at the League until he reached 70, which was considered by others to be an appropriate retirement age. But he couldn't retire completely.
He still wanted to work and felt he was needed in the city, and so he began his own street ministry in Chicago where he helped many people to restore their utilities, find jobs, and connect with their families. He took people to McDonald's or bought them a cup of coffee or traveled to offices necessary for resolving their problems. He offered a social connection to many who had virtually none. Often he observed that his conversation with some of them might be the only one they had all day, that day.
He loved the city of Chicago. His passion was contagious and his enchantment with the constant activity of the big city inspired some of the rest of us to love it dearly. He never took his ability to work for granted and he was happy to be of service and to be a part of that huge society.
He was always a cheerful, optimistic person, always looking forward and making plans for the future. He had made his New Year's Resolutions by Thanksgiving this year and had decided to 1) exercise more, 2) organize his papers, and 3) get rid of the books he had already read.
He was convinced that the secret to good health was wearing an undershirt. He had remarkably good health for most of his life and he did, indeed, wear an undershirt every day, under his dress shirt.
He never wanted to share gossip – although we often asked what he knew – and didn't want us to dwell on the negatives in our lives.
Even when his health began to fail, he believed in going to work in the city, whenever possible.
When he died, his feet were as close to the door as possible. He still had places to go, phone calls to make, and people to see. He still had a purpose and he still was needed by the people he so wanted to serve.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Henrietta; his parents, George and Zella Borneman; and his sister, Kathryn Lansche.
Born in Elkhart, Indiana, to Zella (Howard) and George O. Borneman, on February 17, 1915, George Howard Borneman was the oldest of four children, followed by his sister Kathryn and his brothers William and John.
He grew up in Elkhart watching the New York Central trains that passed through town, dreaming of moving to a big city like the salesmen he saw who got off those trains between New York City and Chicago, in order to make phone calls. With his boyhood cousins and friends, he built a small "fort" along the banks of the St. Joseph River in Elkhart, and again dreamed of moving to the "action".
He attended Hanover College and the University of Michigan, graduating from Michigan in 1937 with a B.A. degree in economics. While in college, he joined the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and recently was awarded a plaque to honor his 70 years of membership. He was quite proud of that achievement.
He married Henrietta Simpson on October 21, 1939, in New York City, at the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church. They had met at the University of Michigan when they went on a blind date where George was paired with another woman and Henrietta with another man. Because Henrietta had grown up in New York City, they married there. Her aunt, who had helped to raise Henrietta, threatened to boycott the wedding but relented, in the end.
After living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, for a while, George worked at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital (now called New York Presbyterian Hospital) in New York City, where he once met Edna St. Vincent Millay, the poet. She would order bottles of whiskey to be brought to her room and he took those calls. At that time, apparently, alcohol was allowed in hospitals!
During World War II, he tried unsuccessfully to enlist in the US Army. After being rejected because of his poor eyesight, he enlisted in the US Navy in 1943, and shortly afterward, his first child, Janet was born while he was overseas. He served as a pharmacist's mate in the Navy, and most of his service was spent on the island of Tinian, in the South Pacific. He had vivid memories of that time and talked often about the Enola Gay airplane which was stored there for a while, prior to its dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. He and his buddies knew that there was some large-scale secret to the building on Tinian that housed the Enola Gay, but they didn't know the full story until after that bomb had been dropped.
After the war, he had to serve an additional six months, because not everyone was sent home immediately, but once released, he returned to Elkhart where he worked for American Coating Mills Company and lived with his wife and child, near all of his relatives. He and Henrietta bought a small house on Arcade Avenue.
In 1948, his great opportunity occurred and he was transferred to Chicago by the American Coating Mills Company, later the Robert Gair Company. He moved his family to La Grange Park, Illinois, because its school system impressed him. He enjoyed working in the Board of Trade Building in Chicago, in human relations, and he often went downtown to work on Saturdays, just for the excitement of going back into the city.
His second child, Nancy, was born in 1948 and it was his great delight to be at the hospital when this event occurred. He was always a very good father.
In July, 1955, his life changed radically when his wife Henrietta was killed in a plane crash at Midway Airport. Both of his daughters survived that accident and, in order to be nearer to them and to raise them himself, he left his job in Chicago and found work nearby as an administrative assistant at the First Congregational Church of Western Springs, Illinois. During this time, he enrolled in and began to attend classes at the North Central Theological Seminary in Naperville, Illinois.
On June 25, 1957, he married Jean M. McKenney and became the father of three more children, Mary Louise, Thomas, and Anne Marie. Jean had been the church secretary at the First Presbyterian Church of La Grange, where George had been a member since moving to Illinois. As a Deacon and an Elder in that church, he got to know Jean, and their marriage lasted 51 years, until his recent death.
In the fall of 1962, he was ordained as a Presbyterian minister and became the assistant minister at the Yorkfield Presbyterian Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. At this time, GB and Jean moved to Elmhurst.
His real "calling" came when he became the director of the Chicago Christian Industrial League in Chicago. There he worked with homeless people who had lost their way and helped them to connect with society by providing clothing, food, job information, and counseling. He worked at the League until he reached 70, which was considered by others to be an appropriate retirement age. But he couldn't retire completely.
He still wanted to work and felt he was needed in the city, and so he began his own street ministry in Chicago where he helped many people to restore their utilities, find jobs, and connect with their families. He took people to McDonald's or bought them a cup of coffee or traveled to offices necessary for resolving their problems. He offered a social connection to many who had virtually none. Often he observed that his conversation with some of them might be the only one they had all day, that day.
He loved the city of Chicago. His passion was contagious and his enchantment with the constant activity of the big city inspired some of the rest of us to love it dearly. He never took his ability to work for granted and he was happy to be of service and to be a part of that huge society.
He was always a cheerful, optimistic person, always looking forward and making plans for the future. He had made his New Year's Resolutions by Thanksgiving this year and had decided to 1) exercise more, 2) organize his papers, and 3) get rid of the books he had already read.
He was convinced that the secret to good health was wearing an undershirt. He had remarkably good health for most of his life and he did, indeed, wear an undershirt every day, under his dress shirt.
He never wanted to share gossip – although we often asked what he knew – and didn't want us to dwell on the negatives in our lives.
Even when his health began to fail, he believed in going to work in the city, whenever possible.
When he died, his feet were as close to the door as possible. He still had places to go, phone calls to make, and people to see. He still had a purpose and he still was needed by the people he so wanted to serve.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Henrietta; his parents, George and Zella Borneman; and his sister, Kathryn Lansche.
REV. GEORGE H. BORNEMAN – Friend of the Homeless
Born in Elkhart, Indiana, to Zella (Howard) and George O. Borneman, on February 17, 1915, George Howard Borneman was the oldest of four children, followed by his sister Kathryn and his brothers William and John.
He grew up in Elkhart watching the New York Central trains that passed through town, dreaming of moving to a big city like the salesmen he saw who got off those trains between New York City and Chicago, in order to make phone calls. With his boyhood cousins and friends, he built a small "fort" along the banks of the St. Joseph River in Elkhart, and again dreamed of moving to the "action".
He attended Hanover College and the University of Michigan, graduating from Michigan in 1937 with a B.A. degree in economics. While in college, he joined the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and recently was awarded a plaque to honor his 70 years of membership. He was quite proud of that achievement.
He married Henrietta Simpson on October 21, 1939, in New York City, at the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church. They had met at the University of Michigan when they went on a blind date where George was paired with another woman and Henrietta with another man. Because Henrietta had grown up in New York City, they married there. Her aunt, who had helped to raise Henrietta, threatened to boycott the wedding but relented, in the end.
After living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, for a while, George worked at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital (now called New York Presbyterian Hospital) in New York City, where he once met Edna St. Vincent Millay, the poet. She would order bottles of whiskey to be brought to her room and he took those calls. At that time, apparently, alcohol was allowed in hospitals!
During World War II, he tried unsuccessfully to enlist in the US Army. After being rejected because of his poor eyesight, he enlisted in the US Navy in 1943, and shortly afterward, his first child, Janet was born while he was overseas. He served as a pharmacist's mate in the Navy, and most of his service was spent on the island of Tinian, in the South Pacific. He had vivid memories of that time and talked often about the Enola Gay airplane which was stored there for a while, prior to its dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. He and his buddies knew that there was some large-scale secret to the building on Tinian that housed the Enola Gay, but they didn't know the full story until after that bomb had been dropped.
After the war, he had to serve an additional six months, because not everyone was sent home immediately, but once released, he returned to Elkhart where he worked for American Coating Mills Company and lived with his wife and child, near all of his relatives. He and Henrietta bought a small house on Arcade Avenue.
In 1948, his great opportunity occurred and he was transferred to Chicago by the American Coating Mills Company, later the Robert Gair Company. He moved his family to La Grange Park, Illinois, because its school system impressed him. He enjoyed working in the Board of Trade Building in Chicago, in human relations, and he often went downtown to work on Saturdays, just for the excitement of going back into the city.
His second child, Nancy, was born in 1948 and it was his great delight to be at the hospital when this event occurred. He was always a very good father.
In July, 1955, his life changed radically when his wife Henrietta was killed in a plane crash at Midway Airport. Both of his daughters survived that accident and, in order to be nearer to them and to raise them himself, he left his job in Chicago and found work nearby as an administrative assistant at the First Congregational Church of Western Springs, Illinois. During this time, he enrolled in and began to attend classes at the North Central Theological Seminary in Naperville, Illinois.
On June 25, 1957, he married Jean M. McKenney and became the father of three more children, Mary Louise, Thomas, and Anne Marie. Jean had been the church secretary at the First Presbyterian Church of La Grange, where George had been a member since moving to Illinois. As a Deacon and an Elder in that church, he got to know Jean, and their marriage lasted 51 years, until his recent death.
In the fall of 1962, he was ordained as a Presbyterian minister and became the assistant minister at the Yorkfield Presbyterian Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. At this time, GB and Jean moved to Elmhurst.
His real "calling" came when he became the director of the Chicago Christian Industrial League in Chicago. There he worked with homeless people who had lost their way and helped them to connect with society by providing clothing, food, job information, and counseling. He worked at the League until he reached 70, which was considered by others to be an appropriate retirement age. But he couldn't retire completely.
He still wanted to work and felt he was needed in the city, and so he began his own street ministry in Chicago where he helped many people to restore their utilities, find jobs, and connect with their families. He took people to McDonald's or bought them a cup of coffee or traveled to offices necessary for resolving their problems. He offered a social connection to many who had virtually none. Often he observed that his conversation with some of them might be the only one they had all day, that day.
He loved the city of Chicago. His passion was contagious and his enchantment with the constant activity of the big city inspired some of the rest of us to love it dearly. He never took his ability to work for granted and he was happy to be of service and to be a part of that huge society.
He was always a cheerful, optimistic person, always looking forward and making plans for the future. He had made his New Year's Resolutions by Thanksgiving this year and had decided to 1) exercise more, 2) organize his papers, and 3) get rid of the books he had already read.
He was convinced that the secret to good health was wearing an undershirt. He had remarkably good health for most of his life and he did, indeed, wear an undershirt every day, under his dress shirt.
He never wanted to share gossip – although we often asked what he knew – and didn't want us to dwell on the negatives in our lives.
Even when his health began to fail, he believed in going to work in the city, whenever possible.
When he died, his feet were as close to the door as possible. He still had places to go, phone calls to make, and people to see. He still had a purpose and he still was needed by the people he so wanted to serve.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Henrietta; his parents, George and Zella Borneman; and his sister, Kathryn Lansche.
Born in Elkhart, Indiana, to Zella (Howard) and George O. Borneman, on February 17, 1915, George Howard Borneman was the oldest of four children, followed by his sister Kathryn and his brothers William and John.
He grew up in Elkhart watching the New York Central trains that passed through town, dreaming of moving to a big city like the salesmen he saw who got off those trains between New York City and Chicago, in order to make phone calls. With his boyhood cousins and friends, he built a small "fort" along the banks of the St. Joseph River in Elkhart, and again dreamed of moving to the "action".
He attended Hanover College and the University of Michigan, graduating from Michigan in 1937 with a B.A. degree in economics. While in college, he joined the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and recently was awarded a plaque to honor his 70 years of membership. He was quite proud of that achievement.
He married Henrietta Simpson on October 21, 1939, in New York City, at the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church. They had met at the University of Michigan when they went on a blind date where George was paired with another woman and Henrietta with another man. Because Henrietta had grown up in New York City, they married there. Her aunt, who had helped to raise Henrietta, threatened to boycott the wedding but relented, in the end.
After living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, for a while, George worked at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital (now called New York Presbyterian Hospital) in New York City, where he once met Edna St. Vincent Millay, the poet. She would order bottles of whiskey to be brought to her room and he took those calls. At that time, apparently, alcohol was allowed in hospitals!
During World War II, he tried unsuccessfully to enlist in the US Army. After being rejected because of his poor eyesight, he enlisted in the US Navy in 1943, and shortly afterward, his first child, Janet was born while he was overseas. He served as a pharmacist's mate in the Navy, and most of his service was spent on the island of Tinian, in the South Pacific. He had vivid memories of that time and talked often about the Enola Gay airplane which was stored there for a while, prior to its dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. He and his buddies knew that there was some large-scale secret to the building on Tinian that housed the Enola Gay, but they didn't know the full story until after that bomb had been dropped.
After the war, he had to serve an additional six months, because not everyone was sent home immediately, but once released, he returned to Elkhart where he worked for American Coating Mills Company and lived with his wife and child, near all of his relatives. He and Henrietta bought a small house on Arcade Avenue.
In 1948, his great opportunity occurred and he was transferred to Chicago by the American Coating Mills Company, later the Robert Gair Company. He moved his family to La Grange Park, Illinois, because its school system impressed him. He enjoyed working in the Board of Trade Building in Chicago, in human relations, and he often went downtown to work on Saturdays, just for the excitement of going back into the city.
His second child, Nancy, was born in 1948 and it was his great delight to be at the hospital when this event occurred. He was always a very good father.
In July, 1955, his life changed radically when his wife Henrietta was killed in a plane crash at Midway Airport. Both of his daughters survived that accident and, in order to be nearer to them and to raise them himself, he left his job in Chicago and found work nearby as an administrative assistant at the First Congregational Church of Western Springs, Illinois. During this time, he enrolled in and began to attend classes at the North Central Theological Seminary in Naperville, Illinois.
On June 25, 1957, he married Jean M. McKenney and became the father of three more children, Mary Louise, Thomas, and Anne Marie. Jean had been the church secretary at the First Presbyterian Church of La Grange, where George had been a member since moving to Illinois. As a Deacon and an Elder in that church, he got to know Jean, and their marriage lasted 51 years, until his recent death.
In the fall of 1962, he was ordained as a Presbyterian minister and became the assistant minister at the Yorkfield Presbyterian Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. At this time, GB and Jean moved to Elmhurst.
His real "calling" came when he became the director of the Chicago Christian Industrial League in Chicago. There he worked with homeless people who had lost their way and helped them to connect with society by providing clothing, food, job information, and counseling. He worked at the League until he reached 70, which was considered by others to be an appropriate retirement age. But he couldn't retire completely.
He still wanted to work and felt he was needed in the city, and so he began his own street ministry in Chicago where he helped many people to restore their utilities, find jobs, and connect with their families. He took people to McDonald's or bought them a cup of coffee or traveled to offices necessary for resolving their problems. He offered a social connection to many who had virtually none. Often he observed that his conversation with some of them might be the only one they had all day, that day.
He loved the city of Chicago. His passion was contagious and his enchantment with the constant activity of the big city inspired some of the rest of us to love it dearly. He never took his ability to work for granted and he was happy to be of service and to be a part of that huge society.
He was always a cheerful, optimistic person, always looking forward and making plans for the future. He had made his New Year's Resolutions by Thanksgiving this year and had decided to 1) exercise more, 2) organize his papers, and 3) get rid of the books he had already read.
He was convinced that the secret to good health was wearing an undershirt. He had remarkably good health for most of his life and he did, indeed, wear an undershirt every day, under his dress shirt.
He never wanted to share gossip – although we often asked what he knew – and didn't want us to dwell on the negatives in our lives.
Even when his health began to fail, he believed in going to work in the city, whenever possible.
When he died, his feet were as close to the door as possible. He still had places to go, phone calls to make, and people to see. He still had a purpose and he still was needed by the people he so wanted to serve.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Henrietta; his parents, George and Zella Borneman; and his sister, Kathryn Lansche.
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