Grandall Simeon Taylor

Grandall Simeon Taylor was born on February 13, 1941 in Gary, Indiana. He was the second child of Louis Frederick Taylor and Josephine Althouse, with older sister Janean and younger sister Dorna. His mother was college-educated, which was uncommon at the time, and instilled in him a love of literature and the arts. Unfortunately, she passed away from cancer when he was still young, which was a traumatic event for his whole family that affected them for the rest of their lives. He was raised mainly in Hobart, Indiana but spent several years with his older sister living in Michigan at the VFW home for children orphaned in World War II which he described as some of the best years of his childhood. He attended Purdue University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Because his family was poor, he had to expend extra effort to work his own way through college. Immediately upon graduation he attended Officer Training School in the US Air Force and spent a year in Vietnam during the war as an aircraft maintenance officer. At the conclusion of his military service, he was hired as an engineer at aerospace contractor Pratt and Whitney and was promptly assigned to their Florida plant to work on the J58 engine for the Air Force’s SR-71 spy plane. During this time he met and married his wife, Blanca, and became a father to son Gregory (Taylor), born in 1976, and step-daughter Cory (Alvarez), born in 1967. In 1980, he and his family was sent by Pratt and Whitney on his first overseas assignment to Belgium, where he represented the company as a field service representative. After two and a half years living in Belgium, he received his second field service assignment in Madrid, Spain, where he spent 4 years working mainly on the F100 jet engine for the F-16 fighter at Torrejon Air Force Base at the height of the Cold War. His third field assignment was in Cairo, Egypt, where he worked closely with the Egyptian Air Force. His fourth and final field assignment was in Kuwait City, Kuwait, right before the beginning of the 1st Gulf War. After the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq, he spent six months living in hiding from the occupying Iraqi forces in Kuwait with a company colleague. Upon his liberation, he returned to the United States to rejoin his family. He was a religiously observant man his whole life, having been raised originally in the Presbyterian faith. In the 1990s he converted to Roman Catholicism and was an ardent follower of the teachings of the Faith. He meticulously studied the Bible throughout his life and taught his children and grandchildren to love and appreciate the Faith. He and his wife were members of Saint Peter Catholic Church in Jupiter FL. He had a keen interest in personal physical fitness, having started weight training in his teens and continuing well into his 80s. He was acutely interested in a wide variety of fields of study and maintained a rigorous personal reading program where he covered topics ranging from theology, English literature, economics and investing, history, and mathematics. He was a fan of opera, attending several operas each year. Most importantly, however, he worked tirelessly on investing. His numerous charts, spreadsheets, figures, and calculations are an enduring testament to the zealous effort he put into maximizing his investment returns. In his retirement years he devoted considerable effort and time to traveling as much as possible to visit his extended family in Minnesota and elsewhere and take special trips of interest to him, such as a cruise through the Panama Canal. He especially enjoyed visiting the mansions of former presidents and the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC. Before his death he had intended to take a trip to Iceland and Norway. In December 2023 he and his wife Blanca celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. He was a loving father, grandfather, husband, and brother, and made extra efforts to be as close as possible to his extended family. He is survived by his wife Blanca Vidales Taylor, his step-daughter Cory Alvarez, his sister Dorna, his son Gregory Simeon Taylor, and grandchildren Alexis Alvarez, Austin Alvarez, Aubrey Alvarez, Kevin Taylor, Zac Taylor, and Matthew Taylor. We conclude this obituary with one of Grandall’s favorite passages from the Bible: Psalm 100 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands, Serve the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing. Know ye that the Lord, he is God; it is he who hath made us And not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with Praise; Be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting, and his truth endureth to all generations.

Grandall Simeon Taylor

February 13, 1941 - April 12, 2024