Gerald K. (Shorty) Foulk passed away on Sunday, March 24, 2019 after a hard-fought battle with COPD. Funeral services will be held Thursday, March 28th at All Faiths Funeral Home, at 2pm. A visitation will be from 12-2pm immediately prior to the service.
Dan Naranjo will officiate. Shorty was born on March 20, 1933, the fourth child of Percival and Marjorie Foulk. Another nine brothers and sisters came later so there was always someone to work, play and fight with.
He attended school and graduated in 1951 from the Archer NE School District. Shorty liked to say he graduated third and then would grin and explain there were only four total students in his class! After graduating from High School, Shorty and his brother Myron enlisted in the Air Force.
It was during the Korean War and after completing Basic Training in Wichita Falls in Texas, he went to school to become a tail gunner on a B29 and B50. During his four years in the Air Force, he spent time in Korea, South Carolina, Guam, Japan and Hawaii. After his time in the service, his sister Janet introduced him to the love of his life, Karen Lindquist.
They married in 1957 and moved to Omaha where Shorty worked at the Omaha National Bank in the Operations Department. During the next few years Karen and Shorty had 3 kids (Dave, Jan and Steve) before they moved to Grand Island in 1965 where he opened up the Omaha National Bank Computer Center. Shorty managed the computer center until 1968 when an opportunity with NCR came up so he picked up the whole family and moved to Indiana.
It was a long year in Indiana and everyone decided they didn’t like being that far away from the rest of the family so they moved back to Grand Island in 1969. At that time, he went to work for the Overland National Bank and bought “the house on the lake”! What a perfect place to have his children grow up being able to fish, swim, boat, ice skate and play hockey.
All of the family and friends loved spending time at the lake and there was always something going on. About this time another son, Greg, was born in 1975. As his family grew up, moved away and married, Shorty discovered the joys of being a grandfather!
He was never happier than when he had a baby in his arms, was playing golf, woodworking, or going fishing with one of his grandkids. And his grandchildren felt the same way, the best week of the year was the week they got to go spend with Grandma and Grandpa Foulk. In 1984 Karen and Shorty moved to York and opened the Video Store.
Shorty loved interacting with the customers and getting involved in the community. He was instrumental in the rebuilding of the Eagles Lodge in York after a fire destroyed the building. They retired to Grand Island in 2009 and enjoyed their time gardening, growing flowers and spending time with family.
Shorty will be missed by all who knew him including his wife Karen, children Jan (Craig) Dangler, Steve (Lynn) Foulk, Greg (Christy) Foulk and Billie (dec. Dave) Foulk; 11 grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; brothers Burt and Phil; Sisters Alice, Maggie, Janet; numerous nieces; nephew and tons of friends including special family friends Dick and Jane Kittridge and their family, and his life-long friend Don Hull. Shorty was preceded in death by his oldest son Dave; brothers Myron, Ron, Den; sisters Linda, Sharon, Shirley and Darlene and his parents.
The family wants to give a special thank you to the Veteran’s Hospital in Grand Island. They took such great care of Dad during these past 5 months. We all know he wouldn’t have been with us this long had it not been for the special nurses and doctors at the VA.
Thank you for taking the time to get to know Dad and appreciating his service to his country. Memorials are suggested to the Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center hospice unit. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Gerald “Shorty” Foulk please visit our Sympathy Store.
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