Kevin ("Tank") Sullivan

It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Kevin ("Tank") Sullivan. Kevin entered heaven's gates on May 23, 2025, at Doey's House (Hospice of Washington County) in Hagerstown, Maryland. Born on Saturday, December 8, 1934, at the Washington County Hospital in Hagerstown, Maryland, he was the third child born to Dr. William James Sullivan and Claudine Gladys Jones Sullivan. His hometown was Funkstown, Maryland, where he made many fond memories. As a teenager, he loved farming on the family farm just south of Hagerstown. He graduated from Hagerstown High School in 1953, where he participated in the FFA, and lettered in Football and Track. He also played football in the 1950s with two county teams, the Funkstown Redskin football team, and the West End Athletic Club football team. He was employed with Fairchild Aircraft during his senior year of high school, working nights and attending school during the day, and continued working there until 1955. He was then inducted into the U.S. Army on March 7, 1955. He completed basic training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and was then sent to Fort Hood, Texas. He participated in "Operation Sagebrush" at Fort Hood, a joint Army and Air Force maneuver involving 150,000 troops. After maneuvers in Texas, he was moved to Fort Polk, Louisiana with the First Armored Division. He played on the Fort Polk football team, playing the position of tackle. After his Army service, he married the love of his life, Gladys (Vance) Sullivan on June 14, 1957. He worked for Victor Products and Jamison Door, and then began his career at Mack Trucks, Inc. He retired from Mack Trucks, Inc. in 1990, after twenty-eight years of service. While working full-time, Kevin also attended college and earned his Associate in Arts degree from Hagerstown Junior College on May 24, 1981 and his Bachelor of Science degree from Frostburg State University on December 15, 1990. Kevin had many interests, including square dancing with his wife, Gladys, for many years with the Westernaires Club. He was an expert woodworker and enjoyed making gifts for family and friends. He won many blue ribbons for his woodworking projects in competitions. He was a member of the Hagerstown Aviation Museum and especially liked to see the Flying Boxcar on display, which he bucked rivets on at Fairchild Aircraft years ago. Kevin and his wife, Gladys, loved to spend time with family, especially family trips to Rehoboth Beach, Myrtle Beach, and Tilghman Island. A joy of his life was spending time with his two granddaughters. Kevin had a strong faith and attended area churches, and most recently attended Emmanuel United Methodist Church. He was baptized as a child and was baptized again by immersion on October 28, 2018. He and Gladys sang on many church choirs together. Kevin and Gladys also traveled to the Red Bird Mission Work Camp in Kentucky for mission trips. Kevin did repairs, painting, and construction in Clay County, Kentucky. He always put others before himself, and loved doing "labors of love" by taking care of those around him. Kevin was married to Gladys for almost sixty years before Gladys passed on January 24, 2017. Kevin is survived by two children: his son, Matthew Sullivan (Suzanne) of Boonsboro, Maryland, and his daughter, Dawn Sullivan Gipe (Timothy) of Greencastle, Pennsylvania; two granddaughters: Kalina (Gipe) Sweigert

(Christopher) of Mercersburg, Pennsylvania and Zandra Sullivan of Boonsboro, Maryland; a brother, William J. Sullivan, of Southport, North Carolina; and a sister, Xandra Lou Werthan (Ben), of Madison, Connecticut. He is also survived by in-laws Richard Vance of Hagerstown, Maryland and Ronald Lee Vance of Williamsport, Maryland, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by two brothers, Johnel Sullivan and Gregory Sullivan, and one sister, Cynthia Sullivan Newman. Kevin’s family invites friends and family to a graveside service at Rose Hill Cemetery, 600 South Potomac Street, Hagerstown, Maryland on Wednesday, May 28, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. The Reverend Randy Reid will officiate. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Hagerstown Aviation Museum in Kevin's memory. A quote from John Wesley reminds us of Kevin's attitude in life: "Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can."