Oscar J. Downes, 82, died March 24 at Loudoun Hospital. The resident of Lansdowne, Va. and former resident of Reston, was born on July 25, 1920 in New York, N.Y. to Norman and Constance Downes.
Downes graduated from New York University with a bachelor of science degree in commerce and a master of business administration. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, attaining the rank of sergeant major. He was a management systems analyst for the Department of Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He was a member of the Alfred St. Baptist Church of Alexandria, Va. and a lifetime member of the Urban League.
He is survived by many relatives including his wife, Shirley M. Downes; two sons, Leonard R. Minus of Greenbelt, Md. and Stephen J. Minus of Chesterfield, Va.; sister, Dorothy Downes of Yonkers, N.Y.; brother, Norman J. Downes of Yonkers, N.Y.; four grandsons and a nephew Vincent O. Downes of Woodbridge, Va.
A wake and funeral services were held March 28 at Heritage Fellowship UCC in Reston. Interment was at Quantico National Cemetery in Triangle, Va.
In lieu of flowers, send donations to The Tom Joyner Foundation, P. O. Box 6300495, Irving, Texas 75063.