Lynn M. Ross, an accountant by profession, had a passion for the past and playfulness to enjoy the present.

"He can trace [his genealogy] back to Adam; I'm not kidding," said Eileen Mahoney Ross, his wife, as she recalled how her husband's expedition back to his ancestral heritage encouraged others' search for their roots in the 1970s.

While resolved to study the history of his family and locality, Mr. Ross, a Vietnam veteran, had adventure in his blood, and passed his passion for skiing and auto racing on to his family.

"I never had any passion for skiing. But since he taught me how to do it, I developed a love for it," Mrs. Ross said, adding that their 7-year-old daughter, Erin, also loves it.

The "man of many talents," as described by his family and friends, died Wednesday at the age of 60, about 10 months after he was diagnosed with lung cancer.

The Cheswick and Springdale community will remember him as "a wonderful person" and strong community member, said Robert Mahoney, brother-in-law of Mr. Ross.

"Everyone enjoyed his company because he would always interact with people and find humor in any situation," he said.

"Even the day before he died, he was exchanging insults with his friends though he could barely speak," Mrs. Ross recalled, saying he was "a real witty, funny person."

Mr. Ross, who studied accounting at Indiana Northern University in Fort Wayne, had his first job at a McDonald's in Lower Burrell and maintained friendships from that experience until his death.

As a member of the 25th Infantry Division, he took part in the Tet offensive during the Vietnam War and eventually moved to Vung Tau as he served in Vietnam from 1967 to 1969.

Back at home, after a talk with his grandmother about his Cherokee ancestry in the late 1970s, Mr. Ross started digging into his genealogy and wrote a two-volume book for his family, "Clan America." The family is proud of Mr. Ross' work, his wife said. "No one will ever do it again, it is so huge a task."

He found out one of his ancestors took part in the Revolutionary War and one in the Civil War at Gettysburg, and that his great-great-grandmother was a Melungeon, among mixed white, native American and African people living in Tennessee.

Mr. Ross also authored three history books for his community -- "Springdale 1906-1981," "Cheswick -- The First 100 Years" and "The History of Springdale-Centennial Edition 1906-2006."

He worked with Edgewater Steel Co. and Hussey Copper Co. before ending up as a cost accountant with Spang & Co., where he continued until his death.

Mr. Ross served as a deacon and elder and was a lifelong member at Springdale United Presbyterian Church. He also was a member of the VFW Post, New Kensington, the Mason's Pollock Lodge, Tarentum, and the Krivian Club, Springdale.

In addition to his wife and daughter, Mr. Ross is survived by his sister, Shelley Henkel of Harwick.

The funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. today at Springdale United Presbyterian Church. The Rev. David Carlisle will officiate, with burial to follow in Deer Creek Cemetery, Harmar.

Memorial contributions can be made to Springdale Free Public Library, 331 School St., or Springdale UP Church, Pittsburgh and School Streets, Springdale, PA 15144.