~ IN MEMORY ~

WA/DL Captain Melvin Rozema

September 23, 1939 ~ December 14, 2022

Mel was born in Chugwater, Wyoming on September 23, 1939, to parents Bessie Rozema (née Ferguson) and Harry Rozema. He was the third of four children. He grew up on the family farm, and in 1946 they moved from Wyoming to Utah.

In June of 1957, Mel borrowed $100 from his father for private flying lessons. He was determined to learn to fly, citing his fascination with birds and their effortless flight and a little yellow crop duster that landed at a neighboring farm when he was a child as motivating factors. Mel worked his way through school, became a flight instructor, and then began flying for the United States Postal Service, the Atomic Energy Commission, the United States Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, Idaho Fish and Game, as well as being a charter pilot. He later became an airline pilot, flying for Western and Delta Airlines, retiring after 33 years. He continued with his hobby plane, a Cessna 180. He enjoyed backcountry flying, often landing to fish, camp, and pan for gold in the wilderness. After retiring from flight because of his age – he channeled his energy into remote control airplanes until his eyesight declined.

He married Sharol ‘Sherry’ Garner in 1961 and they started a family. Ken, Lane, and Karen were raised in the home they built in Centerville, Utah. Together they instilled in their children a love of the great outdoors – camping, snowmobiling, gardening, and traveling.

He cherished his grandchildren, Alyssa and Colton. He held dear to his heart his time with his four great-grandchildren: Adalyn, Arden, Ellie, and Aven. Visits with his family brought him true joy and he was very proud of his children.

He served as the airport manager and fought tirelessly for SkyPark Airport in Woods Cross, Utah for many years. You could often find him mowing the grass or plowing the snow because he took pride in all of his work. Mel loved working in the wood shop at his hangar at the airport, carefully crafting intricate chess and domino sets, beautiful wooden clocks, and furniture. His talent and precision were remarkable.

He enjoyed mingling with his many beloved friends at the Down Under, Sunshine Cafe, Alice’s Cafe, and Ramblin Roads. He had countless lifelong friends and amazing neighbors that he shared many hunting and camping trips, barbecues, and shenanigans with.

In February 2013, he suffered a terrible loss when his loving and loyal wife, Sherry, passed away. After that he felt like a piece of him was missing and he never truly recovered. I can recall him often saying, “I’ve lost my mate and now I don’t know what to do.”

Mel was as stubborn as they come and rough around the edges, but his old age and humbling life experiences brought in a tenderness that we rejoiced in. He always gave wise advice, he was generous and forgiving. He loved cracking jokes, watching NASCAR and Jazz games with Sherry, canning tomatoes, working in the garden and he made one hell of a brisket.

In October of 2022, Mel was diagnosed with throat and lymphatic cancer and he came prepared to fight. Karen was by his side every single day, at every medical appointment, and cared for him selflessly during his battle. After beginning treatment, he and his body decided he could no longer carry on and he passed away at Lakeview Hospital in the company of his devoted daughter and faithful son-in-law, Jeff.

Mel is survived by Ken Rozema and Amy Stoker of Salt Lake City, UT; Lane Rozema of New York City, NY; Karen and Jeff Argyle of Centerville, UT; Alyssa, Adalyn, Arden and Aven Argyle of South Ogden, UT; Colton, Jordan and Ellie Argyle of Centerville, UT.

A celebration of life will be held in April of 2023 at SkyPark Airport. If you are interested in attending, please email celebratingmel2023@gmail.com

From the big, kindly, yellow-beaked bird with the Martini.

While we are supposed to be celebrating a time of peace and quiet joy, I seem to be doing snap rolls and flying in circles of ever-increasing diameter at Vne!

Therefore, I propose to have the first quarterly luncheon of the next year on Thursday, the 16th of February.

It would be at The Fairview Metropolitan near OAK.

I ask those in favor to email a “YES” to the Ugly Bird at:

pjbro@sbcglobal.net as soon as possible. 

If there is enough interest, I will then ask for an RSVP sent to the same address.

Meanwhile, bask in the meaning of this holy time of the year.

Blessings,

W. B.

~ IN MEMORY ~

Navy veteran, WAL/DL Capt. William “Bill” Fulgham

December 29, 1934 ~ November 4, 2022

We have sad news to share this morning…..from family we have learned of the passing of retired Western/Delta pilot Captain William “Bill” Raleigh Fulgham, age 87.  Bill joined Western Airlines 02-27-1961 and was based LAX & SLC, then 030/PDX at the time of his retirement with Delta Air Lines.  Bill is survived by his wife WA/DL F/A MarySue Lewis Fulgham, and by his children and their families.   

As was Bill’s wishes, no services were held. 

Thank you,

~ Carol for the PCN  

Obituary :   William R. Bill Fulgham passed away November 4, 2022. Bill suffered a heart attack just as he completed his daily early morning walk. 

Bill was born in Overton, Texas, December 29, 1934. When he was 6 months old, the family moved to Squaw Valley, CA, in the foothills outside of Fresno. His family relocated to Avenal, CA, and he graduated from Avenal High School in 1952. Bill joined the Navy after graduation. He later attended Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa, OK, earning his A&P license. When Bill returned to California, he earned his private pilot license and, acquiring all the necessary training and flight hours, in 1961 he was hired as a pilot by Western Airlines. 

In 1959 he married Martha Joyce Wilkins and they had 2 sons. After mandatory retirement in 1994, Bill and Joyce spent a year cruising Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands until her death in early 1996. 

In 1998 Bill married MarySue Lewis and they moved to Ridgefield, WA. They continued cruising for a few years and travelled as far north as Skagway, Alaska, and as far south as Manzanillo, Mexico. 

Bill loved his career as an airline pilot. He flew the DC-6, Boeing 737, 727, 757 & 767, and MD-11. He survived the Western/Delta merger but Western Airlines was always first in his heart. Bill was happy to tell you that once he was hired by Western Airlines, he never again worked a day in his life. Going to the airport to fly, see the country and spend the day with great people certainly could not be considered work.

Bill is survived by his wife, MarySue, sons Andrew and Bryan Fulgham, Scott Compton, 2 amazing daughters-in-law Teresa Fulgham and Heather Compton, and 5 well loved grandchildren Samantha, Sydney and Kevin Fulgham and Jack and Luke Compton. He will be deeply missed by all that knew and loved him.

~ IN MEMORY ~

Navy veteran, WA/DL Capt. Charles A. Sherman Jr.

July 24, 1942 ~ October 12, 2022

From friends and colleagues, we learn of the passing of retired Western/Delta pilot Captain Charlie Sherman, age 80.  Charlie covered a lot of ground and worked many jobs as he worked his way towards Captain….A/C mech USN, Alaska Railroad warehouse laborer, hired by NWA in 1963 R&E mech/lead cleaner, radioman for Flying Tigers in 1967 & Maint., worked for Prudhoe Bay Oil Dist., moved to California in 1971 and hired on with Western Airlines 04-21-1971 as a ramper at LAX, then mech 1972 and was a pilot for Western by 07-12-1976, flew B-737, 727, 757, 767, L-1011, and retired with Delta Air Lines July 2002. Whew!!  Charlie did it all!

Charlie passed away on Oct. 12, 2022, at the age of 80 in Surprise, Arizona.

He was born to Charles Sherman Sr. and Pauline Finn in Weymouth, Mass., on July 24, 1942.

Charlie was a Navy veteran, airplane mechanic, and captain for western and Delta Airlines. He retired from Delta in 2002 on the Boeing 767ER.

Charlie was honored by the FAA in his hangar in Lincoln, Montana, and received the Wright Brothers Master Pilot award for holding a pilot certificate for 50 years.

Charlie was an active member of Alcoholics Anonymous for 40 years. He had a unique gift to help other people get and stay sober.

He is survived by sister Karol and Eric Weatherby and sister-in-law Kathy Lewis, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, son Mike, and brother Kirk.

The Charlie Sherman Museum, Hangar 14, at the Lincoln Airport, is filled with his collection of pictures and airline memorabilia from his long flying career. The hanger is available to be shown by appointment with Bob and Karen Frank-Plumlee.

A service will be held at the old Lincoln cemetery in Lincoln, Montana at a later date.

Obituary information is available online at https://www.blackfootvalleydispatch.com/story/2022/10/31/obits/obituary-charles-a-sherman/3435.html

We have managed to get a WordPress expert to do some much-needed updates and improvements to the site. The biggest improvement is that visitors no longer need to log in just to view the routine posts like any other Blog site. The site can be bookmarked and visited by members and by anyone they may want to share a post with.

Site Updates Included:

• Installed a plugin called “BackWPUp” and downloaded a backup of the website
• Replaced the old login system with one that only protects the ‘Members’ and ‘Gone West’ pages.
• Updated all the WordPress plugins.
• Updated the menu to show the profile/logout or login options depending on the user’s login status.

If you have received this announcement by email, please respond “Yes” to Paul at pjbro@sbcglobal.net

We have just learned that Western/Delta Captain Shirley Burch (Otis) Shannon passed in May of 2020.  She was 73 years of age at the time of her passing.  Shirley joined Western Airlines on August 9th, 1976, and retired with Delta Air Lines, based 030/DFW at the time of retirement.  Shirley was born/raised in Chico, California where she had most recently resided prior to her death.

Texas Woman’s University

Find a Grave

Shirley Shannon (WG #182) earned her helicopter rating on May 9, 1974. She also held ratings for multi-engine, flight instructor, ground instructor, and airframe and power plant mechanics. She was also a safety counselor for the FAA. She was the third Whirly-Girl to join Western Airlines and one of 8 women flight crew members in Western’s total pilot group of over 1500.

Shirley was an accomplished 5th-degree black belt in jujitsu from the age of 12. She was the school photographer in high school and after graduation, she earned her helicopter rating on May 9, 1974. she was a member of Whirly-Girls International (WG #182) She also held ratings for multiple engine, flight instructor, ground instructor, airframe, and power plant mechanics. She was a safety counselor for the FAA and a second officer for Western Airlines and one of 8 women pilots in Westerns 1500 crew members. She was also the first woman pilot for Delta Airlines. Shirley was a very talented and accomplished lady who will be missed by all.

Update:  please note service arrangements for WA/DL Capt KB Clark and wife Cookie…..

MEMORIAL SERVICE

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

1:00 PM to 4:00 PM

Horan & McConaty – Aurora

11150 East Dartmouth Avenue

Aurora, CO 80014

RECEPTION

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

2:00 PM to 4:00 PM

HeartLight Center

11150 East Dartmouth Avenue

Denver, CO 80014

INTERMENT

Wednesday, August 10, 2022

11:00 AM

Air Force Academy Cemetery

5136 Eagle Dr.

Colorado Springs, CO 80840

Waynesville, Roger Bruce Hansen, 79, passed away on Sunday, July 31, 2022.

Roger was born into a military family and lived in France for several years before the family settled in Aptos, California.  Prior to graduating from San Francisco State University, he served in the United States Army, 82nd Airborne Division.  Roger worked as a bush pilot in Alaska before entering his long career as a commercial airline pilot.  He retired from Delta Airlines after 36 years of traveling worldwide on trans-Atlantic flights along with his flight attendant wife, Mary.  They resided in Aptos, California during much of this tenure.  Following his retirement as a pilot, they moved to Waynesville, North Carolina, where they have resided for the last 18 years, and where he worked for 15 years as a real estate broker with Re/Max. 

He is survived by his wife of 28 years, Mary Worth Hansen; and a son, Michael Hansen, who lives in California.

A memorial service will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 4, 2022, in the Waynesville chapel of Wells Funeral Home with Reverend Tim McConnell, officiating.  Military Honors will follow the service.  The family will receive friends from 1:30 until 3:00 p.m. at the funeral home. 

In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory can be made to SARGE’s Animal Rescue Foundation, PO Box 854, Waynesville, NC 28786 or Cashiers-Highlands Humane Society, 200 Gable Drive, Sapphire, NC 28774, or Pug Rescue of North Carolina, www.pugrescuenc.org, PO Box 10601, Virginia Beach, VA  23450.

The care of Mr. Hansen has been entrusted to Wells Funeral Home of Waynesville.

Georgiann Sue “Cookie” (Schaaf) Clark, age 80, passed away at the Assured Assisted Living Memory Care Home in Centennial, CO on July 25, 2022, from Alzheimer’s Disease.

Cookie was born March 15, 1942, in Eau Claire, WI. Her parents were Gerald Schaaf and Juanita (Budrow) Schaaf. She has one brother, John Schaaf, of Eau Claire. She is married to Kirk B. Clark, also originally of Eau Claire, now living in Centennial, CO. They have two sons: Kevin Clark of Centennial, CO, and Scott Clark, of Santa Fe, TX.

Cookie Clark lived a wonderful life as a daughter, a sister, an Air Force fighter pilot’s wife, a mother, a teacher, a grandmother, a great-grandmother, a cousin, an aunt, and a friend. Her life has been filled with love and laughter, education, adventure, and fun.

Cookie was born and raised in Eau Claire, WI, and she was always an Eau Claire girl. She lived in a house on Half Moon Lake near Carson Park where she was able to watch the great baseball player Hank Aaron play for the minor league Eau Claire Bears, a farm club for the Boston Braves, in 1952. Cookie’s brother John is a huge sports fan, and she shares her love of sports with him and her whole family.

From an early age, Cookie always knew she wanted to be a teacher. As a child, she would line up her dolls in rows, give each one a book and proceed to teach a class every day. After raising her family, Cookie fulfilled her dream of becoming a teacher. She taught Kindergarten and Second Grade at Jewell Elementary School in Aurora, CO for 20 years before retiring in 2000.

Cookie loved growing up in Eau Claire. She enjoyed figure skating on Half Moon Lake during the winters. She learned to swim at the Eau Claire YMCA, and she attended the YMCA’s Camp Manitou in the summers.

Cookie has a strong Christian faith that was nurtured at Grace Lutheran Church in Eau Claire. She was baptized, confirmed, and married at Grace Lutheran. She enjoyed attending church and singing in the choir wherever she happened to live at the time. While living in Aurora, CO, she was active at Faith Presbyterian Church. She sang in the choir for many years and served as a Deacon.

Cookie attended Eau Claire Memorial High School (Class of 1960). She enjoyed high school and was a cheerleader during her senior year.

In high school, Cookie met the man she would eventually marry, Kirk B. Clark. Kirk played football and baseball in high school.

After high school, Kirk went off to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO. After Kirk graduated from the Academy, these two high school sweethearts would marry on June 30, 1962, at Grace Lutheran Church in Eau Claire. This was the start of Cookie’s next big adventure as the wife of a fighter pilot and the mother of two boys.

Cookie and Kirk have two sons, Kevin, and Scott. Kevin and his wife Cheryl (Lesh) live in Centennial, CO. Scott and his wife Laura (Cullen) live in Sante Fe, TX. Cookie has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Kevin and Cheryl have three sons: Andrew Clark, Matthew Clark, and Aaron Clark. They live in the Denver, CO, metro area. Scott and Laura have two daughters: Jordan Rusk (Brad) and Connor Jennings (Mitchell). Jordan and Brad have three children: two boys, Lincoln Rusk, and Jackson Rusk, and one girl, Madison Rusk. All of Scott and Laura’s children and grandchildren live in the Houston, TX metro area.

Mom always put family first. To Kevin and Scott, she was absolutely the best Mom ever! She was a source of unconditional love. She always made life a fun adventure. She was our first and best teacher. She was the strength and the glue that held our family together as we moved all over the country and around the world since my Dad was a fighter pilot in the Air Force and then a pilot with Western and Delta Airlines.

Since Dad was gone about half the time flying for the Air Force and for the airlines, Mom was a single Mom for much of the time, holding down the fort and raising us kids. She could do it all, and she did it with style and grace.

While Kirk was in the Air Force, and flying as an airline pilot, Cookie and the family were stationed in Phoenix, AZ; Royal Air Force Base Lakenheath, England; Seattle, WA; Anchorage, AK; Tucson, AZ; Minneapolis, MN, and Denver, CO. Mom was always able to make a wonderful, loving home for us wherever we were living.

Mom earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Education from Colorado Women’s College in 1981 and then began a twenty-year teaching career. She taught Kindergarten and Second Grade at Jewell Elementary School in Aurora, CO and retired in 2000. Along the way, she earned a Master’s Degree in Education from Lesley College, MA.

Kevin and Scott agree that Cookie was a great Mom. She made everything fun. She took us on many adventures including the zoo, museums, amusement parks, movies, putt-putt golfing, swimming, and always took us to the library.

Cookie may have started her career as a cheerleader in high school, but she was a cheerleader by nature and a cheerleader in life. To Scott and Kevin, she was our greatest cheerleader, attending our sporting events in little league, youth soccer, youth basketball, and high school soccer and basketball. She supported her children and grandchildren in all their activities including sports (soccer, basketball, lacrosse) and the arts (piano, theatre, dance). She cheered us all on in every endeavor including life.  For example, she loved Harry Potter books and always took her grandson Andrew to The Tattered Cover bookstore for the release parties when a new Harry Potter book would come out. She attended hundreds of soccer games to watch Kevin, Scott, Aaron, and Andrew compete. She attended horse riding events and Special Olympics for Matthew. She supported Jordan in her dance activities and competitions including dancing in Texas, a two-week dance workshop in Boulder, CO, and dance performances in New York and Boston. Cookie also attended Connor’s dance performances in Texas and supported Connor in her Future Farmers of America activities and competitions. Cookie supported both Jordan and Connor in their many educational and academic efforts and achievements.

In addition to cheering for her family in all their activities, she loved cheering for her home state teams of the Green Bay Packers and the University of Wisconsin Badgers. She cheered for all the Air Force Academy teams and would often attend Air Force football games with Kirk. She also enjoyed rooting for all the Colorado professional sports teams including the Broncos, the Avalanche, the Nuggets and the Rockies.

Mom was very competitive, and she enjoyed playing games of all kinds: tennis, racquetball, croquet, ping-pong, card games, and board games. She definitely knew how to have fun!

The last few years of Cookie’s life have been difficult because she had Alzheimer’s Disease. Thankfully, she knew her family right to the end and Kevin was able to be with her when she died peacefully in her bed on July 25, 2022.

Cookie’s most lasting legacy is the gift of love. She was a source of unconditional love to her family and especially to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Everyone that got to know her loved her because she loved them. She offered that profound gift of love to everyone including all the students she taught over those twenty years.

Cookie was a happy, loving person who loved helping others, teaching children and cheering them on so that they can be the best person they can be and achieve their goals in life.

Much like her name, Cookie, she was just plain sweet and wonderful. Not to mention that she made some of the best chocolate chip cookies on the planet!

We love you Mom! You will be missed. We look forward to eating some of your chocolate chip cookies again when we see you in heaven.

Cookie is survived by her husband Kirk Clark of Centennial, CO; her sons Kevin Clark (Cheryl) of Centennial, CO and Scott Clark (Laura) of Santa Fe, TX; her grandsons Andrew Clark, Matthew Clark, and Aaron Clark of Denver, CO; her granddaughters Jordan Rusk (Brad) and Connor Jennings (Mitchell) of Houston, TX; her great-grandchildren Lincoln Rusk, Jackson Rusk, and Madison Rusk of Houston, TX; her brother John Schaaf (Nancy) of Eau Claire, WI; her niece Sara (Schaaf) Jappinen (husband Mark) of Oconomowoc, WI, and additional extended family members.

Cookie was preceded in death by her parents Gerald Schaaf and Juanita (Budrow) Schaaf; and her nephew Mark Schaaf.

A Memorial Service and Celebration of Life will be scheduled at a later date for family and friends.

In lieu of flowers, Memorial Contributions may be made to the Eau Claire YMCA. To make a gift, please call Suzie Slota, Director of Mission Advancement, at 715-839-4631 or email her at sslota@ymca-cv.org

To find out more about the great work of the Eau Claire YMCA in the community, please view their website at YMCA of the Chippewa Valley at YMCA OF THE CHIPPEWA VALLEY

In spite of some Covid casualties, we had a group of nineteen Wallybirds, Quiet Birdmen

and their guests, some who made the effort from quite a distance.

Thanks to our in house docents, Allan Cartwright and Tony Schoemehl who uncovered many

of the mysteries of the gallant CV12. We received some very positive responses and thanks for

those tours.

Allan reported a very generous donation to the Ship/Museum of $380.

He said that anytime we should choose to have another luncheon there that the “ship”

would certainly welcome us