Eugene Allen

Eugene Allen Sr., son of the late John H. Allen and Viola Smith, was born on December 14, 1920 in Savannah, Georgia. He departed this life on February 26, 2005 at the Perry Point Veterans Hospital after a lengthy illness. He was eighty-four years old. He joined the military at the age of twenty-two serving in the Army four years during World War II. He received a Bronze Battle Star, several Campaign Medals, and a Good Conduct Medal. He was honorably discharged after receiving an injury during the Pacific Theater in 1945. After returning home he worked in his mother's store in Baltimore, on the docks as a stevedore and received vocational training in dry cleaning and tailoring receiving his diploma in 1950. In 1957 he married Anna Odessa Shaw and of this union they had a son Eugene Jr. In 1958 he changed his career and became employed by the U.S. Civil Service under the General Services Administration working in the post office. Eugene and Anna later divorced and he devoted his life to raising his son and his work. He became a member of the National Alliance of Postal and Federal Employees and worked several years without missing a day receiving citations for perfect attendance in '62, '68, '73, '77, and '81. In 1971 the GSA officially recognized him for outstanding performance that notably exceeded his position requirements. All the while never missing a special event at school for Eugene Jr. He retired from the GSA in 1984, after twenty-six years, leaving with nine months annual leave accrued. He spent his retirement doing the things he loved, taking pictures, catching up on reading and movies, mail ordering, listening to music, and watching sporting events. He was a private and very generous person who loved his family, making every holiday and birthday a special event. Eugene Sr. had one brother to precede him in death, John H. Allen Jr. He leaves to cherish his memory: one son, Eugene Allen Jr.; daughter- in-law, Brenda E. Allen; two grandchildren, Melinda N. Allen and Eugene Allen III; one great-granddaughter, Dayja N. Parker; cousins, Ethel and Jasper Green of St. Helena, S.C., James and Mary Allen and their sons James Jr., Derrick, and Brian of Upper Marlboro, Md.; and a host of other relatives and friends.

Tributes

Eugene Allen

December 14, 1920 - February 26, 2005