Penn Township recently honored the late John Gore by renaming Airline Street in Penn Township John Gore Drive after the long-time government official.

Gore, who died in March of 2010, will be remembered for his service to not only Penn Township, but to Cass County as a whole.

Gore was born in Clearwater, Florida, but moved with his family to Cassopolis in 1943.

He was a 1948 graduate of Cassopolis High School and earned both a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Michigan State University.

After retiring from Bendix Corporation in 1983, Gore began a career in public service.

He worked on various boards and committees over the years and was the Penn Township Supervisor for 22 years. He retired from that position in 2008.

Gore served on more than 14 community boards throughout southwest Michigan, including the Cass County Human Services Commission, Twin Counties Community Corrections Center, Friends of Cass County Library and the Southwestern Michigan Foundation.

He was instrumental in organizing an ambulance service, which covers four townships and he led the authority that built the Law and Courts Building.

“John has not only served the public as a whole, but he also impacts the lives of people around him,” Brianna Fitzsimons, a family friend of Gore’s wrote in an essay about Gore. “He once visited a young man recuperating from heart surgery and upon leaving, gave him a one-hundred dollar bill. At the retirement party, that same man shared the story and stated ‘I still have that hundred dollars and will pay it forward.’ While John’s resume is impressive, most significant is the manner in which he served. John’s gifts of compassion, patience, intelligence, generosity, humor and dedication were always evident.”

In 2009, Gore was honored with a plaque in front of the Penn Township Hall.