Gary Acton - 1963
(December 3, 1944 - June 3, 2006)
BIO & Picture

Gary & Brenda @ my house for a visit May 15, 2002

  Here’s 40 years in a nutshell, in August of 1963 I enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and was sent to San Antonio, Texas for basic training (5 weeks).  Then was sent to Amarillo, Texas for Tech school until November 21 then to Altus, Oklahoma for my first regular base assignment as a Supply Records Clerk assigned to operate IBM 026 machines.  Was in Altus until July of 1965 when I was sent to Anchorage, Alaska and spent two years at Elmendorf  Air Force Base.  While in Anchorage I saw a lot of really beautiful country as I took a lot of weekend trips with some of the guys I worked with.  Discharged from the Air Force on July 10, 1967 with the rank of Staff Sergeant (E-5) and moved to Hemet, California to be with my future wife who I had meet in Altus, Oklahoma.

  Went to work for a small Electrical Engineering firm call Beckman’s for a short time and on June17, 1968 went to work for General Telephone of California as an Outside Plant Cable Splicer in Indio, California.  On September 27, 1969 married my lovely wife (Brenda) of 34 years and we move back to Hemet in 1970 still working for General Telephone where we still live.  While with General Telephone I have been a Cable Splicer, Cable Pressure and Cable Maintenance, an Outside Plant Engineering Fielder, an Engineer and in February of 1984 became an Outside Plant Network Planner.  Have spent 35 years (as of June 17, 2003) in the telephone industry and have seen many name changes, we are now Verizon of California.

  As a Planner I develop plans, initiate and control new technologies, strategies and network facility deployments and enhancements for an area called the Tri-Valley which includes the Moreno Valley, Hemet/San Jacinto Valley and the Temucala Valley.  The Temucala Valley includes the cities of Temucala and Murrieta which are two of the fastest growing cities in the nation. I am responsible for the modernization, timing and sizing of Network Access facility provisioning, Investment alternative evaluations and related capital budget development and control.  Went to night school while working for General Telephone and received an Associate Science Degree (AS) in Business Management from Mt. San Jacinto College in 1974.

 Published Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Gary Dale Acton, 61, of Hemet, Calif., died Saturday, June 3, 2006.

Graveside services were held Tuesday, June 13, at San Jacinto Valley Cemetery in California.

Gary was born in Columbia. He graduated from Hickman High School. He served in the U.S. Air Force for four years.

He is survived by his wife, Brenda; a sister, Wanda Backues; and three brothers, Donald Acton, Vernon Senor and Edward Senor.

His parents preceded him in death.