William Charles “Bill” Whited
William Charles “Bill” Whited, 95, of Casa Grande, Ariz., formerly of Rimersburg, passed peacefully at home on July 1.
He was born on March 19, 1924, in Rimersburg, the son of Charles Melvin Whited and Bertha Ann (Yates) Whited.
Bill grew up in Rimersburg and graduated from Union High School in 1941.
He graduated from the Clearfield, Pa., Aviation Institute in 1943, and completed U.S. Army Air Corps flight training, earning his “Wings” on July 2, 1944. He flew the C-47 and served in the European Theater during World War II from late 1944 until after the end of hostilities in Europe in 1946. Significantly, he successfully flew a glider mission during Operation Varsity on March 24, 1945 as part of the Allied advance over the Rhine. He continued his military service in the Air Force active and inactive reserve until 1966.
After returning home from the war, he worked with his father as a carpenter for three years in Western Pennsylvania. He attended St. Louis University-Parks College, graduating with an aeronautical engineering degree in 1953.
He began his professional career at North American Rockwell in Columbus, Ohio, and continued working in the aerospace industry until his retirement in 1990. He worked most of that time for Boeing and lived in Columbus, Los Angeles, Seattle and Cape Canaveral, Fla. While at Cape Canaveral he worked on several NASA programs, to include Project Apollo and the Space Shuttle. He played a significant role in the design and development of the Space Shuttle's Thermal Protection System (tile).
His favorite hobby was recreational vehicle travel. He drove his motor homes across the country countless times over several decades. The last time at age 88 with his wife, Fran. He was also the ultimate handyman. He could fix and creatively make anything work.
Bill will be remembered with love by his wife, Frances Hulette Whited, whom he married in 2013; his brother, George and his wife, Joan, of Columbus, Ohio; his nephews, Mark, Greg, David and Dan Whited, Karl and Eric Slaughenhaupt; his nieces, Elyse (Slaughenhaupt) Douglas, Leanne (Slaughenhaupt) Pope, Janet (Smith) Comunale, Elaine (Smith) Murtha and Judy (Smith) Raishart; his sister-in-law, Bernice Smith; his stepson, Charles Hulette; and his stepdaughters, Cathy Sohl, Connie Boeldt and Beverly Baudino.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his first wife, Dorothy (Smith) Whited; his brother, Gene Whited; and his sister, June (Whited) Slaughenhaupt.
WHITED — Services for William Charles “Bill” Whited, who died Monday, July 1, 2019, will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, July 31, 2019, at the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona. Full military honors will be rendered.
