Lester King

Lester Ivan King, age 67 of Tuscarawas Twp., passed away Wednesday, October 17, 2007 at his residence following a short illness. He was born September 29, 1940 in Massillon to the late Walter & Zelma (Yost) King. Les was a 1959 graduate of Washington High School. He served in the Army and received an honorable discharge. He worked as a trade school instructor teaching automotive body work in Sarasota, Florida and operated his own trucking company in Galveston, TX before returning to Tuscarawas Twp. where he lived most of his life. After returning to Ohio, he became well known in the area as a builder of quality homes. His unique style of construction has become a standard. He was a pilot and owned an airplane which was based on a landing strip at his home. The custom home he built for he and Cindy had a garage which doubled as a hangar during the period he was actively flying. Les was always a fan of railroads and eventually discovered the hobby of using retired railroad inspection cars as a sanctioned way to travel on rail lines throughout North America. He became a member of NARCOA, an association of railcar enthusiasts. He soon discovered that parts for these rail cars were in short supply, so he founded Les King Motor Cars. His company manufactured and repaired rail cars, and the service cars used on our railroads. His products are in use in Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Australia. He was able to enlist the skills and talents of many small manufacturers in this area to produce a complete line of replacement parts that have made these cars viable for continued use by both hobbyists and railroad companies. He was preceded in death by his parents; Zelma (2005) and Walter (March 1977) King. He is survived by his wife of 15 years, Cynthia (Sasavicz) King of the residence, two step-sons, Ed (Laurie Caputo) Forrer and Michael (Trish Harp) Forrer, grandchildren, Chase, Blake, Angel, Parker, Jerry, and Ashley. In addition, there are three brothers; Leonard (Karen) King, Carl (Iva) King, and Calvin (Suzanne) King, all of Massillon. A Memorial service will be 11:00 AM Monday at the Paquelet Funeral Home in Massillon. The Rev. Tom Hough will officiate. Friends may call from 10:00 to 11:00. Condolences and messages of support can be shared with the family at www.paquelet.com.