In memoriam: Onita and Tony Wayland

(Source: Progressive Railroading 01/28/2020)

Onita Wayland, former president of the Grand International Auxiliary (GIA) to the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (BLET), died Jan. 20. She was 91.

Her husband, Tony Wayland, a retired member of BLET Division 620 (Fort Worth, Texas), died the next day, Jan. 21. He was 97. The couple lived in Mart, Texas.

Onita served as GIA’s international president from 2001 to 2006. She joined the GIA in 1969 and held many offices within the organization, BLET officials said in a press release.

From 1986 to 2001, she was an international officer until she was elected GIA president. During her tenure as president, the auxiliary conducted a nationwide fundraiser by selling “Mainline Cooking,” a cookbook of recipes submitted by railroad families.

Onita and Tony were married on Oct. 26, 1946.

After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, Tony went to work for the Missouri Pacific Railroad, where he became a locomotive engineer. He was a BLET member for 51 years, retiring in 1984.

The Waylands’ survivors include two daughters, as well as grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Services were held Jan. 25.

“Members of the Greatest Generation, Tony and Onita Wayland left an indelible mark on our brotherhood and our auxiliary,” said BLET National President Dennis Pierce.