Terrell “Pops” Cass, 80, of Chesterton, passed away at 9 a.m. Monday, June 1, 2009 at Regency Place of South Bend, following a brief illness.

He was born on October 12, 1928 the son of the late Irven and Maud (Terrell) Cass in Fort Wayne, and has lived in Chesterton since 2000, coming from Niles, Mich.

On November 12, 2000, he married Carol J. (Arvin) Mabry in Chesterton.

Along with his loving wife, Carol, he is survived by three sons, Joe (Terri) Cass of South Bend, Irven (Bethany) Cass of Fenton, Mich. and Daryl (Donna) Walls of Buchanan, Mich.; two daughters, Jamie (Richard) Pravecek of LaPorte and Laurie (Kelly) Jones of Portage; one sister, Bucille Buckle of Fort Wayne; one brother, Don (June) Cass of Farmland; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. Also surviving is Terrell and Carol’s best friend, Kee Sullivan of Denton, Md.

Mr. Cass was retired from National Standard in Niles, Mich. He was a U.S. Army Veteran of the Korean War, where he earned two purple hearts, one in North Korea and one in South Korea, along with various other service medals. He was a member of the American Legion Post #26 LaRue Messenger in Niles, Mich., Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #1167 in South Bend and American Disabled Veterans in Elkhart.

Terrell was also a member of the Loyal Order of the Moose Lodge #1623 in Chesterton; and was a member of the Miami Indian Tribe of Oklahoma. He was known as “Pops” the Soundman for his son, Irven, who is an Elvis and Tom Jones Tribute Artist. Pops was loved and respected by his Elvis Friends. He was also a loyal fan of WWE wrestling.

Visitation will be from 2-9 p.m. (E.S.T.) Thursday, June 4, in Kaniewski Funeral Home, 3545 N. Bendix Drive, South Bend, where Military Honors will be conducted by American Legion Post #26 LaRue Messenger at 8 p.m. (E.S.T.).

There will be no funeral service. Interment will take place at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. at a later date. Memorial contributions may be made to: St. Joseph County Special Olympics, P.O. Box 643, Mish-awaka, IN 46546-0643. For condolences visit www.kaniewski.com]