Roland BOURQUE

Roland Bourque -- Every Level Roland Lionel Bourque, a local Ontario resident, died Tuesday morning, August 2, 2005 after a short illness. He was 82. Roland was an active member of his church choir. He became ill shortly after his return from performing with Windsong at Carnegie Hall. He was a man respected, and had soft-spoken elegance. He was especially noted for his integrity. Roland grew up in New Hampshire and lived his childhood and youth in Manchester. Roland was an upstanding young man with a character of steel. Directly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Roland enlisted in the United States Army. He ended up with the rank of Gunnery Sergeant. Du ring this time, Roland worked on his musical talent which remained a crucial part of his life and the lives of his family, especially, his son, Dennis. After World War II, Roland moved out to Southern California. He spent many years working for Lockheed on various projects. One of such projects was his work on the flight recorder that went up on the Apollo 11 mission that went to the moon. In his spare time, Roland enjoyed being one of the pioneers of the sport of bodybuilding, which influenced his ol dest son to take up bodybuilding. Roland later spent a great deal of time in real estate where he met his wife, Judith, an administrative law judge. Over the years, they have been very involved in their church and their choir, in addition to their singing with Windsong. Roland was truly a mentor in his grandsons' lives and did nothing but direct them and encourage them to set monumeental goals. All who knew him have been lucky to have witnessed such a beautiful life. "Your whole family will miss you, Govvy." In addition to his wife, he is survived by two sons, Ronald and Dennis Bourque; two grandsons, Ryan and Matthew Bourque; his step-sons, Robert and Joseph Taylor; and his step-grandchildren, Stephen, Spencer, Nicholas and Tyler. Visitation will be held Thursday, August 11, 2005 from 5 to 8 p.m. at Draper Mortuary. Services will be Friday, August 12, 2005 at 10 a.m. at St. George Catholic Church, Ontario. Draper Mortuary, Ontario is assisting the family. Published in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin on 8/10/2005.