Eugene Curtiss West (Gene), age 92 of Springfield, passed away peacefully at his home on Sunday, May 22, 2011. He was born in Reno, Arkansas in 1918. Eugene served his country in the Marine Corp during World War II. Gene was employed as a locksmith at S.M.S. for twenty years. He loved hunting, fishing and clock-making, and was a long time member of the Springfield Yacht Club. He was a great storyteller, had wonderful sense of humor and is remembered for his regular use of words and phrases such as "knucklehead" and "that's it in a nutshell." Gene and Christine Geisser (of Stockton) were married seventy years ago and are parents of a daughter, Carolyn (Connie) Shahmiri; grandparents of Kevin C. Shahmiri and Clara Furman; great-grandparents of Kayden Shahmiri, Mia and Joshua Furman, all of southern California. Eugene was preceded in death by his parents, Elva and Harriet West; a brother, James F. West, and a sister, Ida Mae White of Springfield. Eugene is survived by brothers, Elva M. West Jr. and William F. West; one sister, Mary Helen Herndon, all of southern California. Memorial services with full military honors will be held at 1 p.m. on Friday, May 27 at Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home.