Ernest “Ernie” McLean, Sept. 3, 1919 to April 2, 2005. From Asheville, NC. He was a professional entertainer in Broadway Shows and was the Ring Master and singer in the largest Shrine Circuses in the United State and Canada and he sang before three U.S. Presidents: Truman, Kennedy and Johnson. During the WWII he was an Infantry Officer and fought in four major battles: The Hertgen Forest, The Battle of The Bulge, The Rhine River Crossing and Rhur Pocket. He received three Bronze Star Medals during the war and was discharged with the rank of Captain. He is survived by his wife, Margaret; father of Michael of Chicago and Sue Anne of Burlingame CA; stepfather of Mark LaCroix and Stephanie Rogers; grandfather of eight; great-grandfather of two; brother of Donald of Asheville, NC; uncle of Donald Jr. of Beaufort SC, Robert and Douglas McLean of Weaverville NC and Kathryn Welch of Greer, SC. Services are pending.
