Foster child had 'soft spot' for kids in need
Apr 13, 2018Ankney Jr. a lifelong commitment to helping children, his daughters said. “He was always concerned about children who are homeless because he was actually in a foster home as a child,” said Judy Ankney. Mr. Ankney contributed regularly to Hephzibah Children's Home in Macon, Ga., and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. “He had a soft spot for all those children,” said Susan Fierst. Mr. Robert H. Ankney Jr., of Mt. Pleasant, died Wednesday, April 4, 2018, at his home. He was 85. Born Sept. 15, 1932, in Derry, he was the son of the late Robert H. Ankney Sr. and Bernice I. (Squibbs) Robb. After graduating from high school, Mr. Ankney took a job as a metallurgist at the former Vanadium Alloys Steel Co. in Latrobe to support his siblings. He retired from the company when he was 62, Ankney said. A devout Christian, Mr. Ankney served as the Sunday school superintendent, youth director and lay minister at Lycippus Calvary United Methodist Church and then became a member of Armbrust Wesleyan Church, where served on the board and as conference delegate. He sang in the choir at both churches. His favorite hymn was “Blessed Assurance.” “He loved to sing in the choir,” Fierst said. A member of the National Rifle Association, Mr. Ankney was an avid deer hunter and trout fisherman. An avid golfer, he became an avid runner when most people start scaling back their physical activity. “He started running at the age of 55 and participated in the Pennsylvania Senior Games,” Ankney said. Mr. Ankney had always wanted to take up running but didn't find the time until after his kids were grown, she said. “I just think it was the first time he had time to dedicate to it,” she said. His preferred events were the 200- and 400-meter races. He took gold in the Westmoreland County Senior Games, she said. He also competed in the U.S. National Senior Sports Classic in Syracuse, N.Y., Ankney said. Mr. Ankney liked to travel, particularly to lighthouses in Maine, Canada and Michigan, and he collected lighthouse miniatures and had “a huge collec... (Tribune-Review)
