Francis E. "Gene" Leighton's Obituary
Francis Eugene (Gene) Leighton, age 100, of Fayetteville, Arkansas passed away Saturday June 17, 2023. He was born January 21, 1923, in San Francisco, California, to Lloyd and Gladys Acheley Leighton. Francis E. Leighton was a World War II Honoree
Branch of Service: U.S. Army Air Force
Hometown: Vallejo, CA
Francis enlisted in the Air Corps in 1942 and deferred until 1943. Entered service as a cadet and assigned to Luke Field, Arizona and received commission in 1944. Attended instructor school and then assigned instructor for AT6 aircraft. Attended Radar school which included Bombardier and Navigation training. Attended Gunnery school before assignment as Pilot for B-24 and B-29 Bombers. After cease fire, he separated from active duty and was assigned to reserve unit.
Francis attended the University of Nebraska where he received his degree in the College of Engineering and Architecture in June of 1949.
Francis and Donna Lou Morris were married in Lincoln, Nebraska in June of 1945. After fulfilling his military reserve commitment outside of Anchorage, Alaska, he moved the family to Sacramento.
He attended the University of California at Berkley and received his master’s in architecture and began practicing architecture with a license from the State of California in 1957.
Mr. & Mrs. Leighton raised their 3 children in the Sacramento area of California. Francis designed and built a home for them in El Dorado Hills. He designed numerous buildings in the area including the HI HOUSE in Inverness, CA (for which he won a design award from Sunset Magazine), the Natural History Museum in Folsom (for which there is a plaque in his honor mounted on the building) and many telephone buildings for the City of Roseville.
In the early 1990’s, Francis and Donna moved to Fayetteville. Arkansas to be near their 2 youngest grandchildren.
Francis is preceded by Donna Lou Leighton (who passed away at age 75) and second wife Rosemary Leighton. He is survived by 2 daughters, Jennifer Robinson and Pamela Ford, and 1 son Gregory Leighton. Francis has 7 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren.
Graveside service will be 10:00 am, Thursday, June 29, 2023, at Fairview Memorial Gardens in Fayetteville.
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