Armando Velasco

Armando R. “Army” Velasco, 88, of Berne passed away Friday, Sep. 15, 2023, at Swiss Village in Berne. He was born June 29, 1935, in Houston, Texas to John and Geneva (Urias) Velasco. He was married June 24, 1958, at the First United Methodist in Decatur to Louise Jane Schwartz.
He was an honorably discharged member of the Indiana Air National Guard, having served in the 1950s. He was a member of the First Mennonite Church in Berne, the American Legion Post #468 in Berne and the Indiana Fire Chiefs Association.
He was employed at Micro Precision now known as Micromatic in Berne, where he retired after 40 years of employment. He later began working at Yager-Kirchhofer Funeral Home, now Zwick & Jahn Funeral Home, and greatly enjoyed the opportunity to greet people and help them in many of the same ways he helped the Berne community by being involved with the fire department. What he was most known for in the Berne community was serving on the Berne Fire Department where he served on the fire team then rose through the ranks and achieved the commission of fire chief. He truly enjoyed his volunteer participation, especially working with Mayor Blaine Fulton. In all, he spent 40 years as a volunteer with the Berne Fire Department in his capacity as both team member and as chief.
He loved his family dearly. He was very proud of all of them and their accomplishments. He enjoyed traveling, and one adventure that was very near and dear to him was traveling in 2018 to Italy and Switzerland with family. The city of Berne recognized him and his wife in 2023 by naming them the Chamber of Commerce Citizens of the Year to acknowledge their dedication to the Berne community. He also was very fond of playing golf and enjoyed the game throughout his life. So, it was not coincidental that following his retirement he worked at the Cross Creek Golf Course in Decatur on a part-time basis and played at the Wabash Valley Golf Club in Geneva.
He is survived by his wife, Jane, of Berne; two sons, Kirk Velasco of Destin, Florida; and Kyle (Tammy) Velasco of Parker Colorado; son-in-law, Mark Tomlin of Indianapolis; five sisters, Alice (Rudy) Cortez of Bryan, Texas; Idalia (Paul) Edwards of Phoenix, Arizona; Sylvia Velasco of Chesapeake, Virginia; Lydia (Myron) Wacker of Fremont, Wisconsin; and Geneva Trejo of Wichita Falls, Texas; sister-in-law, Susie Velasco of Los Angeles, California; four grandsons, Ryan (Brittany) Tomlin; Grant (Kiersten) Tomlin; Daniel Velasco; and Andrew Velasco; and one great-grandchild, Charles Armando Tomlin
He was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Kim Christine Velasco Tomlin on Dec. 13, 2022; three sisters, Rachel Kuncewiez; Elida Castro; and Elda Ortiz; and three brothers, John, Ruben and David Velasco.
Visitation will be Tuesday, Sep. 19 from 10-11 a.m. at the Swiss Village Chapel and from 3-5 and 6-8 p.m. at Zwick & Jahn Funeral Home, Yager-Kirchhofer Chapel in Berne and Wednesday, Sep. 20 from 9:15-10:15 a.m. at First Mennonite Church in Berne followed by the funeral service at 10:30 a.m. Officiating will be Pastor Jim Schwartz and Pastor Jeff Linthicum. Burial will be at Mazelin Cemetery in Berne.
Memorials may be made to the Swiss Heritage Society or the Berne Fire Department.
Arrangements provided by Zwick & Jahn Funeral Homes, Yager-Kirchhofer Chapel in Berne. To sign the online guest book, visit www.zwickjahn.com.