Died May 3, 2024
CEDAR- Neal Edward Neese, 88, of Cedar, passed away on Friday, May 3, 2024, surrounded by his family at his home. Neal was born on February 16, 1936, on the Neese farm in Lapel, Indiana, to Lloyd and Velma (Bulen) Neese. He was united in marriage to Barbara Ann Rudolph on June 29, 1957, at the Speedway Christian Church in Indianapolis, Indiana. Barbara preceded him in death on February 15, 2024.
Neal graduated from Ben Davis High School in Indianapolis, Indiana (class of 1954 ), and earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the General Motors Institute in Flint Michigan in 1958. He enjoyed a successful career as a senior design and development engineer, working for Allison, General Motors, Oldsmobile, and B.O.C. until his retirement in 1991.
Active in his community, Neal was a member of the Little Traverse Lake Property Association and the NRA. Neal was also a faithful member of the Leland Community United Methodist Church and held strong political beliefs as a devoted Republican. Additionally, he was a proud member of the Alpha Gamma Upsilon Fraternity at GMI, joining in 1955.
The number one love of Neal’s life was his wife of 66 years, Barbara, and he had passion for several things that came in a close second. Neal loved the game of golf – playing, watching on TV and talking about it. He was a member of two local golf leagues and loved to drive his mother’s light blue 1979 Oldsmobile to the course. He shared his love of the sport with his grandsons and taught them all how to play. Occasionally they would get a better score than him and he would beam with pride. Deer hunting was another one of Neal’s passions. Since he was young, he would spend two weeks every November deer hunting near Ralph in the Upper Peninsula, and later years in Minnesota at Stugie’s Camp with his friend Stu Genung. He enjoyed his “deer camp” time regardless of his luck at bagging a buck. Cars; anyone who ever got corralled into a conversation with Neal soon realized that he loved to talk about cars. He could start talking about the fasteners holding the front bumper on and not stop talking until he was explaining the chrome nameplate on the trunk lid. He was loyal to General Motors and even after being retired for 33 years talked as if he were still part of the team. Another favorite thing was going out to eat. When family was visiting it was dinner out almost every night, and he and Barbara were no strangers to all the nice dining places in the area. Going to Market 22 was his latest favorite and Melanie treated Neal and Barbara like family. Boonedocks, Happy Hour and the Cove were also places he enjoyed treating family and friends. Never one to utilize the modern computers and smart phones Neal was big on reading, especially political reading. Any birthday or Christmas he received books among his gifts. Neal was a bit old fashioned and appreciated the simple things in life. Sailing, beach combing, hunting morel mushrooms, watching their grand kids play sports, driving his old MGA car, and watching the news channels on TV occupied a lot of his time.
Neal is survived by his two daughters, Julie Schubel and Jennifer (Rand) Hruska; his grandchildren, Justin Schubel, Carol Schubel, Timothy (Maggie) Hruska, and Joseph (Stacy) Hruska; and his greatgrandchildren, Jennifer, Juliette, Ele, Noah, Logan, and Mia. He is preceded in death by his parents, his beloved wife Barbara of 66 years, and his two brothers, Lloyd Neese Jr. and Don Neese.
The funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 25, at the Martinson Funeral Home in Suttons Bay with visitation two hours prior at 9:00 a.m.
Burial will follow the service at the Cleveland Township Cemetery.
Please join us in celebrating Neal’s remarkable life and sharing condolences and memories with the family at www. martinson.info.
Arrangements are with the Martinson Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Leelanau.
