Ross Henry DeYoung

The son of Earl Peter De Young and Gerdina (Dekker) De Young, Ross was born in Chicago, Illinois. Above all, Ross was a kind and gentle soul, and a loving husband, father, and grandfather. He was a consummate gentleman, who was incapable of walking through a door without first holding it open for anybody within a 25 foot radius.

His unobtrusive manner masked a steely determination and competitive drive. At 16, Ross received a full academic scholarship to Yale University, where he received Bachelors of Fine Arts and of Architecture, and a Masters of Architecture subsequently conferred.

While home during a college break, Ross met the love of his life, Julie Groszman, whom he married two years later.

From 1951 to 1953, Ross was a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Marines working as a radio operator during the Korean War. After his service, he joined an architectural firm in Long Beach, California, where he designed residential and public buildings. In 1957, he received an American Institute of Architects residential design award for the home he built for his family in Long Beach, California.

In 1961, Ross and his family moved to Illinois, where he pursued his profession until his retirement in 2010. He designed libraries, schools, banks, medical buildings, and detention facilities throughout the greater Chicago area.

Most notably, in 1991, Ross designed an award-winning addition to the Joliet Public Library built by the renowned American architect Daniel Burnham in 1903. In granting the award, the Indiana Masonry Institute paid tribute to the seamless blending of the new structure with the original building in a manner that captures the man and his work:

"This structure takes a position of being highly contextual and very respectful of its neighbor, the original building. Very often when architects have an addition, they will attempt to leave their own mark on the building but in this particular case, the architect disciplined himself as to attempt to make the building become whole again and to have his design become part of the entire composition. It is apparent that the architect probably did a great deal of investigation and reviewed old documents in the archives, because in two or three years’ time, this building will look like it is one entire building that was just recently erected. We think rather than trying to force a statement on a building, the blending and marriage of both the addition and the existing building is commendable. Our congratulations."

In 2002, Ross also designed the award-winning Black Road Branch of the library.

Shortly after retiring, Ross and Julie moved to West Chester, Pennsylvania. In retirement, Ross took up watercolor painting, and maintained an active schedule playing bridge and golf. He was also an avid tennis player and a decades-long member of Rotary.

Ross is survived by his loving wife of 68 years, Julie, with whom he shared a deep appreciation for art, architecture, theater, and opera. Ross and Julie traveled throughout Europe together for many years. He is also survived by his son Drake De Young of Morgantown, Pennsylvania; daughter Lisa De Young Stern and her husband Paul Stern of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania; grandsons Alex Stern of Brooklyn, New York and Ben Stern and his wife Kate Coughlin Stern of San Francisco, California; sister Elaine Finley of Westminster, Colorado; sister-in-law, Jacquelyn De Young of Geneva, Illinois; and many nephews and nieces. He was predeceased by his beloved son Christopher De Young, and by brothers Jay De Young and Roger Lee De Young. Donations may be made to the Sunny Crest Home, 2587 Valley View Rd., Morgantown, PA 19543.