Obituaries for the week of Nov. 24

Robert Dillion, Eugene A. Von Gonten, Ann Marie D’Attilio, Ronald E. Francis, John H. Johnson Sr., Richard C. Horner

Robert Dillon
   BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIP — Robert Patrick Dillon, 78, died Saturday.
   Born in Cleveland, Ohio, he lived most of his life in the Trenton area.
   A U.S. Navy veteran of World War II, he retired after 40 years of service from PSE&G in Trenton.
   A member of St. Vincent DePaul Church, he was president of the Mercer District Council of the St. Vincent DePaul Society, past president of the Conference of the St. Vincent DePaul Society and a member of the St. Vincent DePaul Church choir. Mr. Dillon was a member of the Holy Name Bowling League and an avid baseball fan.
   Son of the late Peter and Frances Dorsey Dillon, father of the late Mary Elizabeth Dillon, and brother of the late Patricia Blackwell, he is survived by his wife of 53 years, Phyllis Patterson Dillon; five sons and four daughters-in-law, Michael and Judy Dillon of Hamilton Square, Patrick and Colleen Dillon of Roebling, Timothy Dillon of Bordentown Township, Matthew and Kristin Dillon of Bordentown Township, and John and Debra Dillon of Rogers, Minn.; three daughters and two sons-in-law, Mary Ann and Larry Kostula of Millstone Township, Dr. Margaret Dillon and Pete Dodimead of New Egypt, and Catherine and John Gallagher of Bordentown Township; two sisters and brothers-in-law, Margaret and Raymond Anderson of Linden, Mich., and Eileen and Paul Howard of Ewing; 10 grandchildren, Lauren, Lindsay, Mary Kate, Sarah, Alexa Ann, McKenna, Drew, Shannon, Conor and Sean; a great-granddaughter, Teagan; and many nieces and nephews.
   The funeral was held Wednesday from the Buklad Yardville Memorial Chapel, with Mass of Christian Burial celebrated in St. Vincent DePaul Church.
   Burial followed in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Bordentown.
   Memorial contributions may be made to the St. Vincent DePaul Society, 555 Allentown Road, Yardville, NJ 08620.
Eugene A. Von Gonten
   HAMILTON — Eugene A. Von Gonten, 84, died Nov. 17 at the home of his daughter in Bordentown Township, with his family by his side after his courageous battle with cancer.
   Born in New York, N.Y., he lived most of his life in the Trenton area. A U.S. Army Air Corps veteran of World War II, he retired after 33 years of service from New Jersey National Bank in Trenton. He was formerly employed with Old Borough Savings and Loan. He was a member and the first treasurer of the Hamilton Elks Lodge 2262 and also served on the Board of Trustees. He was a member of the St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish and also served as Lector. He was a member of Peddie Golf Course where he got a "hole in one" twice. He was on a bowling league at Slocum’s Bowling Alley for over 50 years and enjoyed travel and golfing.
   Son of the late Anthony J. and Winifred Jones VonGonten, and brother of the late John VonGonten and Margaret VonGonten, he is survived by his wife of 58 years, Irene F. Kosobuski VonGonten; three daughters and a son-in-law, Cathy VonGonten of St. Thomas Virgin Islands, Gail VonGonten and her husband John Dougherty of Aurora, Ill., and Debra Mincarelli and her fiancé, Howard D. Mathues, both of Bordentown Township; a granddaughter, Sarah Mincarelli; two brothers, James VonGonten of Calif., and Anthony VonGonten of Hyde Park; three sisters, Winifred Farley of Elizaville, N.Y., Joan VonGonten of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and Maria Lambe of Simpsonville, SC; and several nieces and nephews.
   The funeral was held Monday from the Buklad Yardville Memorial Chapel, 30 Yardville Allentown Road, Yardville, with Mass of Christian Burial celebrated in the Church of St. Raphael, 3500 S. Broad St., Hamilton.
   Burial followed in Brig. Gen. William C. Doyle Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery in Wrightstown.
   The Hamilton Elks Lodge 2262 also held services.
   Memorial contributions may be made to the The Hospice of Moorestown VNA, 10 East Stow Road, Suite 100, Marlton, NJ 08053 or to the American Cancer Society, Mercer County Unit, 3076 Princeton Pike, Lawrenceville, NJ 08648.
Ann Marie D’Attilio
   COCOLALLA, Idaho — Ann Marie D’Attilio, 52, died Nov. 15 at her home in Cocolalla, Idaho.
   Born March 23, 1953, in Trenton, she was the daughter of Amilio and Mafalpa (Petroni) Eleuteri. She grew up in Trenton and graduated from Bordentown Regional High School and attended Rider College.
   She was press secretary for the New Jersey Department of Transportation and worked at the U.S. Property and Fiscal Office for the Department of Defense in New Jersey. She moved to Sandpoint, Idaho in 2002 and served as president of two helicopter charter companies, Sandpoint Helicopters in Sandpoint, Idaho and Inter-Island Helicopters in Kauai, Hawaii.
   She was preceded in death by her father. She is survived by her husband Ken D’Attilio, and her sons Joel, Jonathan, Jeremiah, Joseph and Justin D’Attilio, all of Cocolalla, Idaho; her mother, Mafalda "Muffy" Eleuteri of Bordentown; her brother and sister-in-law Ron and Maryann Eleuteri of Ewing; nieces and nephews Christopher, Daniel, Elizabeth (Phil) Lauren; and many friends across the country.
   A visitation for family and friends was held at the Lakeview Funeral Home Chapel in Sandpoint, Idaho.
   Memorials may be made to The Brain Tumor Center at Duke, Duke University Medical center, Durham, NC 27710 in her name.
   Lakeview Funeral Home in Sandpoint, Idaho is handling the arrangements. The online guestbook is at www.lakeviewfuneral.com.
Ronald E. Francis
   TRENTON — Ronald E. Francis, 58, died on Nov. 12 at York Hospital in York, Pa.
   Born in Trenton, he was educated in the Bordentown public school system. He graduated from Bordentown Regional High School in 1966. He was the first person in Bordentown Regional High School to score 1,000 points. He was inducted into the Bordentown Regional Hall of Fame in 2000.
   He attended Virginia Union University for two years and served in the United States Air Force. He was a factory worker for Ocean Spray Juice Company in Bordentown.
   Predeceased by his parents, Clarence and Irine Francis Sr.; two sisters, Arlean Francis and Flossie Juniors; he is survived by his wife, Brenda Hughes-Frances of Gardena, Calif; two daughters, Ebony Francis-Brown (Derrick) of Paramount, Calif. And Kenya Francis of Gardena, Calif; two grandchildren, Kenneth Woods II and Ashanti Brown both of Paramount, Calif; three sisters, Blanch Coleman and Esther Francis, both of Bordentown and Glaydell Pownes (George) of Burlington; two brothers, Clarence Francis Jr. of Burlington Twp. and Wilson Francis of Bordentown; a sister-in-law, Patricia Rosa of Los Angeles, Calif.; four brothers-in-law, Calvin, Joseph, Loyd II and Jeffrey Hughes all of Los Angeles, Calif; four aunts, Vera Fraley, Willie Burton, Lovenia Mack all of Miami, Fla. and Edith Ingram of Buffalo, N.Y.; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives and friends.
   Funeral services were held Saturday at Mount Zion A.M.E. Church, 32 Burlington St., Bordentown.
   Interment was in Bordentown Cemetery in Bordentown.
   Arrangements were by the Anderson Funeral Home.
John H. Johnson Sr.
   BORDENTOWN CITY — John H. "Budd" Johnson Sr. aka "Hatman," 74, of Bordentown City died Saturday at his residence.
   He was born in Mount Holly and had resided most of his life in Bordentown.
   He retired from Ocean Spray, Inc. where he had over 23 years of service. He was a life member and an exempt fireman with the Consolidated Fire Association. The Johnson family has served over 115 years of accumulated volunteer fire service. He was actively involved with the Johnson Memorial Cadets, The Jersey Joe’s and the Jersey Devils Drum and Bugle Corps for many years.
   He is survived by two daughters and sons-in-law, Donna and Gordon Potts of Groveville and Alsion and Jay Rice of Columbus, two sons and daughters-in-law, John, Jr. and Mary Johnson of Florence and Brian and Dianne Johnson of Hamilton, a sister, June Bell of Mountainview, Alaska, nine grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and several nieces and nephews.
   The funeral was held Wednesday from the Huber-Moore Funeral Home, 517 Farnsworth Ave., Bordentown with full fireman’s honors provided by the Bordentown Fire Department.
   Burial was in the Bordentown Cemetery.
   Memorials may be made to the Consolidated Fire Association, PO Box 47, Bordentown, NJ 08505.
Richard C. Horner
   FLORENCE — Richard C. Horner, 86, died Nov. 17 at Compassionate Care Hospice, St. Francis, Trenton.
   Mr. Horner was a graduate of the Pennington School and served his country in the U.S. Army Air Corps, and later as Director of Civilian Personal at Fort Dix, from 1966 to 1979. He volunteered at St. Francis Hospital and also with the Literary Program of Burlington County.
   He was the husband of the late Constance Horner and father of Carla (Joseph) Luyber of Florence and the late Heidi Horner. He is survived by his special friend Betty Robinson and little dog Candy; his grandchildren, Lt. USN, Dr. Todd (Anne) Luyber of Cheasepeake, Va., Robin Luyber of Delran and Tara Luyber of Plainsboro; and great-grandson, Hunter Luyber.
   Funeral services were held Saturday at the McGee Funeral Home, 869 Beverly Road, Burlington.
   Interment was in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Burlington.
   Contributions can be made to American Diabetes Association, 1060 Kings Highway, Cherry Hill, NJ.