Lloyd Elwood West

Elwood West, 79, born Dec 31, 1935, Maryville, TN, died on Aug. 23, 2015. He was the son of the late Winfred K West and Zelpha Ellen Reagan West (Tiny). He is survived by a brother, Larry West (Diane); nephew, William Thomas Ketner West; grandniece, Rachel West; 6 paternal and 10 maternal first cousins and their respective families. Elwood went through the Maryville City Schools through high school and completed his BS degree in electrical engineering at the University of Tennessee. He completed his Masters degree, also in electrical engineering at UT. His career as an electrical engineer was at IBM in Lexington, KY. While there he acquired 5 U.S. patents for engineering inventions. In addition, he authored 12 publications on a variety of engineering topics. His job titles included Product Safety Engineer and Staff Electrical Engineer, and he served as Lead Engineer on several of the projects. Throughout his career he was active in the IEEE society for electrical engineers, serving for a while as the Chapter Treasurer. He was a member of Park United Methodist Church - a member for decades, serving in many offices such as Administrative Board Member and President of United Methodist Men. In addition, he was a member of Berley Kiwanis Club of Lexington where he was active member for many years; Toastmasters, The Bluegrass Chapter - serving in several offices including Chapter President and Educational Vice-President. He was awarded the Distinguished Toastmaster Award several years ago after more than 25 years of participation. He enjoyed many years of membership in the Lexington Athletic Center where Aqua-Aerobics class was a favorite for decades, and his favorite hobbies were boating, sailing and adopting stray cats. He also liked the Wildcats. Family will receive friends from 1:00 until 2:00 PM, Friday, August 28, 2015 at Smith Trinity Chapel. Funeral service will be at 2:00 PM with Rev. Ken Abbott officiating. Interment will follow at Grandview Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to: Park United Methodist Church, 645 High St. Lexington, KY 40502. Smith Funeral & Cremation Service, Maryville, 865-983-1000, ww.SmithFuneralandCremation.com. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Lloyd Elwood West please visit our Sympathy Store.