Roland R. Villeneuve
July 9, 1931 - April 12, 2018
Roland passed away April 12, age 86 peacefully after a long and noble battle with multiple ailments. He was born in Detroit, Michigan and raised on the East side until age 14 when he entered the Servite Seminary in Chicago. Following 6 formative years where he studied theology, philosophy, the classics, math and science, he left the seminary and then served in the US Army, in the US and Panama, achieving the rank of Sergeant. Among his many extra-curricular interests in these years, Roland excelled at tennis, baseball, ice skating, swimming, and deep sea fishing. On the dance floor, he was light on his feet.
After his honorable discharge from the military, he married Elaine Marie Lada of Detroit in 1955, was accepted to the College of Engineering at the University of Detroit, and joined General Motors, initially as a designer/draftsman. He graduated from U of D with a BSME and over the next 35 years, held a number of increasingly responsible engineering and management positions at the GM Tech Center including design of passenger protection systems, advanced work on the Camaro and Firebird, as a frequent expert witness in high profile cases, and as a key leader of competitive product intelligence operations until his retirement.
A devoted family man, Roland rarely missed dinners at the family home in Troy or his children's extra-curricular activities. He was known to whistle Frank Sinatra's "Strangers in the Night" while designing and building very challenging home customization projects. A left hander, he took up golf, developed a smooth swing and shot in the 80s. In later years he dusted off earlier experience around the pool table and became a competitive force amongst his buddies at Fox Run.
Roland is predeceased by his parents Romeo and Marguerite Quenneville Villeneuve, and wife of 54 years, Elaine Villeneuve. He is survived by his four children Anne Marie Brady (Kevin) of Novi, MI; Raymond Villeneuve (Denise) of Atherton, CA; Mary Villeneuve (Chad Kelderman) of Seattle, WA; and Claire Schneider (Jay) of Colorado Springs, CO. His eight grandchildren are, respectively, Michael and Madeline Brady; Nicole and Robert Grant Villeneuve; Nate and Sylvie Kelderman; and Rebecca and Kyle Schneider. Dear brother of Jacquie (the late Jerry) Hall and the late Adrienne (John) Smith He leaves behind his special friend Berni Braun with whom he spent many happy moments.
A memorial mass will be held in his honor at 10:30 am on Friday April 27 at the Catholic Church of the Holy Family at 24505 Meadowbrook Road in Novi followed by a luncheon reception at the nearby Fox Run Retirement Community. In lieu of flowers, donations are welcome to the Macular Degeneration Foundation.