Vance Frederick Taylor was born in Kearney, NE on February 15, 1923 to Whitney W. Taylor and Mary (Jacobson) Taylor. He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Mildred C. Taylor in 2006; his brother, Clarence W. Taylor in 2011; sister-in-law, Mary Lou Taylor; a son, Douglas L. Taylor in 2021; Douglas’s wife, Nancy C. Taylor in 2018; Dean’s wife, Sherry H. Taylor in 2018; and dear friend Ada Lynne Maul in 2023.
He is survived by a son Dean F. Taylor; grandsons, Craig Taylor (of Wyoming) and Garrett Taylor (of Arizona); granddaughter Lauren Taylor Edwards of Omaha, NE, with her husband Ryan; and great grandchildren, Sylvie Christine Edwards (age 5), and Hugo Douglas Edwards (age 1). He is also survived by nephews and nieces and beloved cousins, friends, and neighbors.
Vance attended grade school for seven years at Old Stanley School and one year at Fair Oaks School. He attended Riverdale High School and graduated in 1940. He attended Kearney State College the fall semester of 1940. He then did farm work for his father and for hire. In the summer of 1942, he attended a sheet metal school in Kearney. In August 1942, he went to Cheyenne, WY to work for United Air Lines at a B-17 airplane modification plant.
In February of 1943, Vance was drafted into service from Buffalo County and was enlisted at Fort Crook, Omaha. Next stop was Camp Dodge, IA. He took a limited term of basic training at St. Petersburg, FL and had training at Langfield where prior to war years, the New York Yankees had spring training. After basic training, Vance was assigned to headquarters squadron of the Army Air Corp at Bolling Field, Washington DC. His assignment was to do a variety of classified statistical work at the Pentagon. Headquarters squadron personnel had an extra set of dress clothing and permanent off duty passes. Vance usually had a furlough every six months to go home to Nebraska, and also took trips to Frederick, MD, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York. In fall of 1945, his wife, Mildred Claggett, came to Nebraska with him. He was discharged February 20, 1946 at Fort Meade, Maryland as a staff sergeant.
Vance and Mildred were married October 14, 1945 in Frederick, MD. They returned to Vance’s home at Elm Creek, NE. In June 1946, Vance and Mildred moved to Omaha. Vance got a job at the home office of Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company. They welcome their son, Douglas, in April of 1951. Son Dean joined the family in June 1958. Both sons graduated from college and had successful careers. He retired on December 1, 1973 after a 37.5 year career. He invested the remaining 50 years of his life in his community and family (and playing with his stock portfolio). Together, Vance and Mildred had many nice auto tours and some wonderful motor coach tours. They had 15 great elderhostel trips.
After retiring, Vance volunteered as a tax preparation expert for 34 years. He was also a lifetime member of the American Association of Individual Investors and a charter member of Louis Rukeyser's Wall Street. He was a 14 gallon blood donor and a favorite of the Red Cross donation staff for his stock tips and good stories. Vance and Mildred were leaders at their church group and handled the weekly church collections for many years. Vance was on the church finance committee for many years. He was also one of the nine members of the church foundation established in mid-1989. Vance remained in his home, cooking for himself, and still giving stock tips until the day he died, on December 18, 2023. He was a beloved grandfather and great-grandfather and a good friend and philanthropist.
A funeral service for Vance will be held on Thursday, December 28 at 11:00 am at St. Paul United Methodist Church. Vance will be laid to rest at Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
Memorials may be made in his honor to any of the following organizations, each of which Vance honored highly in life: St. Paul United Methodist Church; Nebraska Children’s Home Society Foundation; The Salvation Army of Omaha; The Durham Museum; The Museum of Nebraska Art in Kearney.
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