Vernon William "Woody" Witte
Vernon William "Woody" Witte
January 17, 1920 - June 8, 2013
America's
Greatest Generation lost another of its best on Saturday, June 8, 2013.
Born in Omaha, NE on January 17, 1920, Vernon was just two-years-old
when his family set out for the riches of southern California. It took
two weeks of broken wheels and camping alongside the dirt roads in that
early model Ford to make it to the then beautiful San Fernando Valley.
Twenty-one years later, with
WWII
underway, Vernon joined the fight, ultimately flying over 50 missions
in a B-24 in the South Pacific. His vivid tales of being lost and of
crash landings made it easy to understand why he made a pact with God to
never get in another airplane.
Vernon met his one true love,
Florence Tyler, in Los Angeles in 1947. They were married within the
year and were never far from one another until Florence's passing in
2005. He is survived by their two children, Joe Witte (Julia) and Susan
Armstrong (Ted) and two grandsons, Tyler and Matthew Armstrong.
Vernon
worked for Lockheed Aircraft in Burbank, CA for 35 years before
retiring and moving to the high desert in Hesperia. Woody, as his wife
lovingly called him, was a dedicated provider for his family. He was a
man who could fix just about anything and always maintained the family
vehicles. He helped his son rebuild an engine or two for a couple of MG
sport cars. After his daughter moved to Idaho, he taught her how to
change the oil, spark-plugs, and air filter on her car… following the
family tradition of doing-it-yourself!
Woody was a caregiver at
heart. In retirement, he helped his aging neighbors and Florence too,
when she got Alzheimer's. As he got older and needed help, Vernon
decided to move to Idaho to be closer to his children and grandchildren.
Special thanks to all the caregivers over the last five years at
Wynwood Assisted Living for their special treatment of Woody. A kinder
and gentler man may have never passed this way before. His sweet smile
and gentle way was with him to the end and will never be forgotten.
A
mass and celebration of Vernon's life will be held at St. John's
Cathedral (Chapel) on Thursday, June 13, 2013 at 10:30 a.m.. A viewing
will precede the service at 10:00 a.m. The burial will be at Riverside
National Veterans Cemetery on Monday, June 17, 2013 at 9:30 a.m. with
military honors. At last, Woody and Florence will fly together.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Vernon William "Woody" Witte, please visit our flower store.
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