George H. Uppling Jr.

NORTH VERNON

George H. Uppling Jr. finally made it Home at 7:44 a.m. on June 3, 2023. His family is confident that he traded in his worn-out earthly body for one that is made new in Heaven.

Born August 17, 1940, to George Uppling Sr. and Grace Miller, George spent many of his early years falling in love with all things cowboy related, especially the singing ones, Gene Autry and Roy Rogers. He loved that a cowboy could rid the world of bad guys and end the day sitting with his trusty equine companion by a campfire.

On May 18, 1959, George enlisted in his beloved Marine Corp. After basic training at Paris Island, South Carolina, he spent time stationed at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina; Okinawa, Japan; and Quantico, Virginia. He was honorably discharged on April 12, 1963. His love for the Marines ended only when his time on earth did. As he would frequently say, “Once a Marine, always a Marine.”

While in the Marines, he met and married Bertha Twigg. They married on April 13, 1963, and recently celebrated their sixtieth anniversary. They had three daughters, Robin (David) Brown, Renee (Ray) Reks, and Rachel (Marc) Hall. He loved his family dearly, including six grandchildren, Jacob (Presley), Luke (Courtney) and Joy Reks, Dylan Brown, and Morgan and Mallory Hall, and one great-grandchild, Judah Reks.

George pursued many interests in life. Some of his favorite and most often talked about included riding broncs in the rodeo, running a backhoe for an excavation company, co-owning Bible bookstores with his dear friend, John Penn, pastoring small churches, creating multiple trail riding magazines, and founding his specialty advertising business, George Uppling and Associates.

Along his life journey, George made and maintained numerous friendships that he cherished. Many of those friends likely lined the streets of gold and welcomed him into heaven.

Above everything else, George knew the most important thing in his life was his relationship with Jesus Christ. While he was far from perfect, he rested in the love and grace of his Lord and Savior. In his last days, he believed with confident hope that once his time here was completed, a land much more glorious and magnificent awaited him. He knew he was bound for the Promised Land.

A funeral service for George will be conducted at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, June 8, 2023, at the Dove-Sharp &Rudicel Funeral Home and Cremation Service in North Vernon, Indiana with Billy Higgs and Ray Reks officiating. The visitation for family and friends will be held on Wednesday, June 7, 2023, from 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at the funeral home and one hour prior to the service on Thursday. Burial will follow in the Vernon Cemetery in Vernon, Indiana with John Penn officiating and military graveside rites by the Marine Corp Honor Guard and Matt Hester Post #2021 V.F.W.

Memorials may be made in honor of George through the funeral home to White River Christian Church in Noblesville, Indiana for the Kenya Bush Mission Trips or Marine Foundation of Indiana.

We are so grateful your eternal body will never feel pain, Dad, and we’ll be so happy to be reunited again one day. Semper Fi and happy trails until we meet again.