Obituary for Eugene C. "Gene" Lelie
Eugene C Lelie passed peacefully, surrounded by family on February 14th, 2020. Eugene “Gene” was the first of five sons born to Eugene J. Lelie and Laura Grace (Templeton) Lelie of Lambertville.
Gene was predeceased by his parents, his Aunt Mary and Uncle Chick; his brothers Robert and James; his son Sean, and his beloved wife Linda, whom he reunited with in heaven on none other day than Valentine’s Day. Gene is survived and gravely missed by his brothers: Timothy and his wife, Karen, and Mark Christopher and his wife, Denise; his sons: Eugene Lelie Jr. and his wife Kendra, and Ralph and his wife Marla; Linda’s son Brian, and many grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.
When he wasn’t fishing off the beach at the Jersey Shore or Cape Hatteras, NC, or on his boat in Marco Island, Florida, you could find Gene in Lambertville, his cherished hometown. Born in 1943, Gene spent most of his life on the canal fishing, hunting with his father and brothers and enjoying time spent with his family at the Lock House. In his adulthood, Gene entered into Law Enforcement, later becoming a private detective. He spent most of his adult years in this profession before beginning a successful career in Real Estate which he took over for his father, Eugene J. Lelie. Gene was a pillar in the Lambertville Community in real estate for many years before retiring and enjoying life on the beaches of Florida with his adored little dog Casey.
Gene is remembered for his stubborn, “refuse to give up” attitude and his facetious personality. He was world-renowned for his lack of patience, not holding back his opinion and a knack for telling it like it is. He always said what he was thinking even if it wasn’t what you wanted to hear. With that said, he was genuine to a fault and sugar coated nothing. His extensive vocabulary was more than highly proficient at knowing more curse words than most people learn in a lifetime. He liked four letter words as much as he loved fishing (and trust us he LOVED fishing more than he loved most other things). These words of encouragement, wisdom, and sometimes comfort, kept us in line, taught us the value of tough love and gave us an abundance of humorous memories to share with our families and friends for a lifetime.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 22, 2020 at 11 am at the Van Horn-McDonough Funeral Home, 21 York Street Lambertville, NJ 08530 (vhmfh.com).
There will be visitation at the funeral home on Saturday morning from 10 am until the start of services
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Lambertville Animal Alliance, 1432 Route 179, Lambertville, NJ 08530 (animalalliancenj.org) to honor Gene’s love for animals.
Gene was predeceased by his parents, his Aunt Mary and Uncle Chick; his brothers Robert and James; his son Sean, and his beloved wife Linda, whom he reunited with in heaven on none other day than Valentine’s Day. Gene is survived and gravely missed by his brothers: Timothy and his wife, Karen, and Mark Christopher and his wife, Denise; his sons: Eugene Lelie Jr. and his wife Kendra, and Ralph and his wife Marla; Linda’s son Brian, and many grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.
When he wasn’t fishing off the beach at the Jersey Shore or Cape Hatteras, NC, or on his boat in Marco Island, Florida, you could find Gene in Lambertville, his cherished hometown. Born in 1943, Gene spent most of his life on the canal fishing, hunting with his father and brothers and enjoying time spent with his family at the Lock House. In his adulthood, Gene entered into Law Enforcement, later becoming a private detective. He spent most of his adult years in this profession before beginning a successful career in Real Estate which he took over for his father, Eugene J. Lelie. Gene was a pillar in the Lambertville Community in real estate for many years before retiring and enjoying life on the beaches of Florida with his adored little dog Casey.
Gene is remembered for his stubborn, “refuse to give up” attitude and his facetious personality. He was world-renowned for his lack of patience, not holding back his opinion and a knack for telling it like it is. He always said what he was thinking even if it wasn’t what you wanted to hear. With that said, he was genuine to a fault and sugar coated nothing. His extensive vocabulary was more than highly proficient at knowing more curse words than most people learn in a lifetime. He liked four letter words as much as he loved fishing (and trust us he LOVED fishing more than he loved most other things). These words of encouragement, wisdom, and sometimes comfort, kept us in line, taught us the value of tough love and gave us an abundance of humorous memories to share with our families and friends for a lifetime.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 22, 2020 at 11 am at the Van Horn-McDonough Funeral Home, 21 York Street Lambertville, NJ 08530 (vhmfh.com).
There will be visitation at the funeral home on Saturday morning from 10 am until the start of services
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Lambertville Animal Alliance, 1432 Route 179, Lambertville, NJ 08530 (animalalliancenj.org) to honor Gene’s love for animals.