VP-4 Association

originally posted 07/2009

Joe Blum -4/21/1935 – 6/3/2009 Born in Saxon, SC to Florence & James Blum. Joe earned the rank of Eagle Scout, with Silver Palms. He joined the US Navy in 1953, and had a 20 year career in naval aviation which would take him all over the Pacific. He later worked at Ford Aerospace and the Kennedy Space Center in spacecraft electrical engineering. Joe’s wife Dorothy preceded him in death just a few months ago. He leaves behind two children, John Blum (Diane) of San Jose, CA, and Nancy Wilson (Neil) of Lafayette, CA; three step-children, Stephanie Zimmerman (Dean) of Titusville, FL, Wendy Taylor (Bobby) of Duncan, SC, and Dwane Church (Kim) of Moore, SC; 15 grandchildren; and a sister, Barbara Medlock of SC.

While searching for VP-4 vets to notify about our upcoming reunion, I ran across this sad news. I have no contact info for the family.

Alton L. LISHNESS ATCS USN (Ret) VP-4 1950 – 1954

NORTH ANSON, ME — Alton L. Lishness, Navy (retired), 77, died Monday, June 9, 2008, at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor.

He was born on Jan. 21, 1931, in Moscow, the son of Thomas and Olive (Churchill) Lishness.

He graduated from Central High School in North New Portland with the class of 1949. After high school, Alton joined the Navy. He served in Patrol Squadron Four (VP-4) circa 1950-1954 flying as a radioman and radar operator on P2V’s out of Whidbey Island, Wash. Then, after a two-year tour at Naval Auxiliary Air Station, Kingsville, Texas, he volunteered for operation DeepFreeze. He was aboard VX-6 for six years (1956-1962) flying as radioman on the R4D’s, P2V’s and the “Connie Crew.” An Antarctic mountain, Lishness Peak (2200m 78-53s 084-54w) near the south end of Sentinel Range of the Ellsworth Mountains was named after him.

He then transferred to HT8 at Ellyson field where he qualified as a helo crew chief and SAR rescue swimmer, 1962-1965. After AV-B school, he was ordered to VP-50 (1966-1969) where he flew the SP-5B Seaplanes and the P-3 Orions before being transferred to Naval Air Station, Patuxent River, Md., 1969-1973. After a three-year tour on the USS Independence CV-62 (1973-1976), he was assigned as the command senior chief, AV/Weps Division Scpo and Det maintenance senior chief with Squadron 10 Patrol, VP-10.

His sons, Tom and Bob, both served in the Navy with him at Naval Air Station, Brunswick. He retired July 1, 1982, after serving his country for 33 years, three months and three days of continuous service. He earned several degrees in business administration and business economics at the University of Maine Farmington and served his hometown of North New Portland, as town manager for 10 years before retiring a second time.

Alton was also a member of the Lions Club of New Portland, the Masons lodge of North Anson, The People Who Care Food Cupboard of Madison, and a member of the Community United Methodist Church in North Anson.

Alton also enjoyed playing Santa for many years, bringing excitement and joy to children of all ages.

He was predeceased by his parents, Tom and Olive Lishness, and his grandson, Kenny Bacon, Army veteran.

He is survived by his wife, Beverly Lishness of North Anson; his children, Susan Bacon of Clements, Md., Thomas Lishness and his wife, Laura, of Windsor, Jill Wood, her husband, Jay, of Mechanicsville, Md., Robert Lishness of California, Md., and their mother, Elsie Lishness of Hollywood, Md.

He is also survived by his stepchildren, Sim L. Daigle his wife, Christy, of Sabattus, and Ellen Stanley, her husband, Chris, of Norridgewock; grandchildren, Leah Danala, Tara Daigle, Matthew Daigle, Chris Lishness, Shaun Lishness, Mark Stanley, Chelsea Wood, Matthew Wood, and Stephanie Wood; five great-grandchildren; a sister, Thomasine Lutzky of Silver Springs, Md.; and a brother, Dean Lishness of Pleasant Ridge.

He touched the lives of so many … Loved by all … Never to be forgotten. He will be missed.

A funeral service will be at 2 p.m. Friday, June 13, at the Community United Methodist Church in North Anson, with the Rev. Margo Carmines officiating. Interment will be in the Sunset Cemetery, North Anson.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The People Who Care Food Cupboard, c/o Richard Dyer, 27 Blackwell Hill Road, Madison, ME 04950.

Arrangements are by Giberson Funeral Home, 40 Maple St., Madison.

Published in the Morning Sentinel on 6/12/2008

Burial:
Sunset Cemetery
North Anson
Somerset County
Maine, USA

—

Larry Hames
VP-4 1975 – 1978
VP-4 Veterans Assn Database Manager
database@vp4association.com

Donovan, Vincent Joseph, 85, of Arizona passed away on April 8, 2008. He was born in New York City Feb 18, 1923. He retired as CPO in the US Navy and served Naval Intelligence in South America and Korea, as well as Patrol Squadron in South East Asia. Upon retirement, he was employed in the electronics industry in California. He later began employment with Intel Corp. in 1977 and moved to Arizona in 1979. Retiring from Intel 1994..He will always be remembered in our hearts as a wonderful, sensitive, and generous man whose greatest priority was his family. He is survived by his loving and devoted wife Norma J. Donovan, married 51 years; Bob and Debbie Collins, daughter and son in law; Dennis P. David, son in law. They have 4 grandchildren, 6 great grandchildren and also survived by his sister Catherine Grace Donovan and 5 nieces/nephews residing in New York City. Services were held at Phoenix Memorial Park and Mortuary 200 West Beardsley Rd. Phoenix, AZ 85027 April 15, 2008.

ATR3 Paul R. GILDONE served in VP-4 during 1960 – 1961. He worked in Avionics and flew as a member of Crew 12.

PALM BAY, Fla. — Paul R. Gildone, age 67, of Palm Bay, Fla., passed away Monday, Oct. 8, 2007, after a brief illness.

Paul was born in Conneaut, Ohio, the son of Cosmo and Catherine (Ross) Gildone.

Paul is survived by two daughters, Susan (Billy) Thompson and Sara (Stuart) Patterson; and one son, Joseph Paul Gildone. He is also survived by brothers, Perry and William of Conneaut and Edward of Oklahoma; and one sister, Mary Alice DeGennaro of Florida. He is also survived by nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his beloved wife, Martha, and brother, Vincent.

Funeral Services will be Friday, Oct. 12, 2007, at Memorial Funeral Home in Palm Bay.

Local information was provided by the Raisian Family Funeral Home, Conneaut.

Larry Johnson worked in Power Plants and flew as a Flight Engineer on Crews 1 and 7.
Lawrence Johnson of Gainesville died Monday after a short illness. He was 66.
Mr. Johnson was born in Jamestown, N.Y., and moved to Gainesville 15 years ago from California.
He retired from the U.S. Navy as a chief petty officer.
He enjoyed doing carpentry work and supplied his services to Gainesville Country Day School. He was also an avid RV traveler and a member of Special Military Active Retired Travel Club.
He was preceded in death by a son, Ron Johnson.
Survivors include his wife, Judy Sheldon of Gainesville; daughters Cherrie Phillips of California and Stacey Green of Brooker; sons Jeff Johnson of Alabama, Mike Arrants of Waldo, Steve Arrants of Cedar Key and Jeff Arrants of Melrose; sisters Betsy Johnson, Karen Landry and Linda Meiner, all of California; a brother, John Johnson of California; and six grandchildren.
Arrangements by Archie Tanner Funeral Home in Starke.
JOHNSON, LAWRENCE R
ADJC US NAVY
DATE OF BIRTH: 01/02/1939
DATE OF DEATH: 10/31/2005
BURIED AT:
DEDAN CEMETERY
BROOKER, FL 32622

Simon Theriot Jr., 66, of Grasonville, died July 21, 2004 at his home. The cause of death was not available.
Born May 25, 1938, in Sulphur, La., Mr. Theriot was the son of the late Simon Theriot Sr. and Edith Monceaux Theriot. He grew up in Longville, La., graduating from Longville High School. He attended Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, La., and Louisiana Tech University before graduating from the Naval Academy in 1962.
A naval aviator, he served a tour in Vietnam with squadron VP-4, ASW, and was honorable discharged as a lieutenant.
In January 1968 he joined Trans World Airways, retiring as a captain in 1998. During his career he lived in Annapolis and was based out of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
In 1996 he moved to Oyster Cove in Grasonville, and enjoyed a home also in Key Largo, Fla. His interests included travel and boating. He was a member of St. Christopher’s Catholic Church, the Naval Academy Alumni Association and the Naval Academy Athletic Association.
Surviving are his wife, the former Rosalyn Seta, whom he married Dec. 29, 1962; two daughters, Melanie Moore of Midlothian, Va., and Yvonne Gazelle of Annapolis; one son, Simon Theriot III of Stevensville; one sister, Judy Thibodeaux of Lake Charles, La.; one brother, Vernon Theriot of Moselle, Miss.; and five grandchildren.
Visitation is from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday at Fellows, Helfenbein and Newnam Funeral Home, 106 Shamrock Road, Chester. A funeral mass will be said at 11 a.m. Tuesday at St. Christopher’s Catholic Church, 1861 Harbor Drive, Chester. Interment will be private in the United States Naval Academy Columbarium.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Hospice of Queen Anne’s, 300 Del Rhodes Ave., Queenstown,MD 21658

BENNETT Jr., Owen Francis, 67, USN (Ret) died Thursday, March 18, 2004 in Jacksonville, FL where he has resided since 1977. Survivors include his wife, Leasie Bennett; 4 children, Julie Kozerski, Janice Newell, Carol Woodward, and Michael Bennett; 11 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren. Graveside funeral services will be held 2:00 PM, Wednesday, March 24, 2004 in Chapel Hills Memory Gardens, 850 St. Johns Bluff Rd. Arrangements by HARDAGE GIDDENS CHAPEL HILLS FUNERAL HOME.
Owen Bennett served in VP-4 as an AT2 flying on Crew 8.
Published in the Florida Times-Union on Mar. 23, 2004

Theodore A. Moran of Pomona passed away on August 5, 2003, at 72 years of age. He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Geri Moran and three daughters, Teri Parkson, Cindy Baker and Vicki Moran, and four grandchildren, Kyle and Kelly Parkson, and Mitch and Kris Baker. Ted was born in Brentwood, CA, and has lived in Pomona for 40 years. He served in the Navy during the Korean War. Ted worked over 30 years for the Navy at the Naval Plant Representative Gage and Standards Division in Pomona. When he retired in 1986, he had served as the Director of the Gage and Standards Division for 13 years. He was also a past President of the Navy League. Ted led a happy and fulfilled life. He was a devoted man who loved his wife, daughters, and grandchildren. His friends also shared a special place in his life. A private memorial service was held at the Moran residence.

Published in Inland Valley Daily Bulletin on Aug. 10, 2003

Matthew Armitage was a LTJG and served as the Assistant Airframes Division Officer.
MATTHEW JAMES ARMITAGE RETIRED CORPORATE VICE-PRESIDENT FOR FEDERAL MOGUL CORP. age 70, a five-year resident of Jensen Beach, Florida, died August 1, 2003, at St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Hospital, in Pontiac, Michigan. He was born July 9, 1933 in San Francisco, California, and was a former resident of Bingham Farms, Michigan. Mr. Armitage earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Metallurgic Engineering from Stanford University, a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from University of Michigan, and a Law Degree from Wayne State University. Mr. Armitage was a Corporate Executive with Federal Mogul Corp., for 25 years, and a General Manager with North American Tiaho for seven years. He served in the U.S. Navy and in the U.S. Marines. He loved golf, music, history and mathematics, and was a member of the Stanford Club. He is survived by his wife, Phalle Louise (nee: Potter),sons, Michael Armitage (Sally) of Strongsville, Ohio, and Douglass Armitage of Rochester Hills, Michigan, daughter, Sarah Zawodny (Timothy) of Pleasant Ridge, Michigan, and grandchildren, Rebecca, Joshua, Rachel, & Joseph Zawodny, and Brady, Noelle, & Tayt Armitage. His son, Matthew, preceded him in death.

Charles E. Riley, CDR, U.S. Navy (Retired), of Norman, died Monday, July 14, 2003. Graveside services will be at Paoli, Oklahoma on Thursday July 17, 2003 at 10:00am. Visitation will be at Mayes Funeral Directors from 4:00pm until 8:00pm on Wednesday. He was born January 17, 1935 in Oklahoma City to Royce ‘Buster” and Rosalie Gray Riley. He graduated from Elk City High School in 1952 and earned his BS degree in Business from Oklahoma A&M, a BS in Health Care Services from Southern Illinois University and his masters in International Affairs from George Washington University. He entered the U.S. Navy in 1956 and received his Navy Wings in 1957. In 1960 he was united in marriage to Martha Jean Wood of Trenton, Tennessee in Carmel, California. They enjoyed duty assignments in Okinawa, Japan, Alaska and London. They retired to Norman in 1984 following twenty eight years of service. After retirement he worked for O.U. as a metrolift van driver, enjoying all of his ‘riders”. He enjoyed all O.U. athletics, particularly baseball. His affiliations included, Siloam #276 Masonic Lodge, The Retired Officers Association, Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society and Sigma Phi Episilon. He is survived by his wife, Marty of the home in Norman; his daughter, Elizabeth of Plano, Texas; a sister Carolyn Weinmeister and a niece, Patty Weinmeister of Oklahoma City. He was preceded in death by his parents, Royce and Rosalie Riley, and by his son, Patrick Kevin Riley. The family has selected the baseball program at the University of Oklahoma as appropriate for contributions.
Published in The Oklahoman on July 17, 2003

Al Reeder flew as a member of Crew 2 in 1959 and Crew 9 in 1961. He was later an instructor on the P-3 avionics systems and then the Avionics Chief in VP-26.

Alvin G. “Al” Reeder, ATCS, U. S. Navy Ret., 64, of Pensacola died Thursday, April 2. 1998.

Senior Chief Reeder was a native of Festus, Mo., and had resided in Pensacola for the past 30 years. He was a veteran of the Korean Conflict and Vietnam, having earned the Navy Achievement Medal, National Defense Medal with Bronze Star, Republic of Vietnam Campaign with Device, six awards of the Good Conduct Medal and the Vietnam Service Medal.

He was preceded in death by his first wife, Georgia; his mother, Doris Reeder; his father and stepmother, Glen and Pauline Reeder; and sister, Glenda Hunt.

Survivors include his wife, Avon Reeder; a son, Dave Reeder and his wife, Vickie; a daughter, Kathy Turner and her husband, Lee; five grandchildren, Heather, Shannon, Amber, Summer, and Jacob; two stepsons, Howard and John Griffin; two stepdaughters, Ruth Cobb and Brenda Watson; eight step-grandchildren; three sisters, Helen (Gene) McMahon, Faith (Bud) Thurman and Connie Fredericks; and a brother-in-law, Debbie Hunt.

Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Monday, April 6, 1998, in the First Methodist Church with the Rev. Larry Mosley and Dr. Henry Roberts officiating.

Burial with military honors will be in Barrancas National Cemetery.

OAK LAWN FUNERAL HOME is in charge of arrangements.

Friends may call at the funeral home from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Published in the Pensacola News Journal, Sunday 5 April 1998, page 4C.

Melvin flew with Crew 9 during 1959 – 1960 and with Crew 10 during in 1961

Navy Halts Search For Lost Fliers

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (UPI)

The Navy called off the search Friday for three fliers missing after the inflight collision of two aircraft and declared them lost at sea in the line of duty.

Missing were the pilot of an A3 Sky Warrior attack aircraft, LT Deighton A. Hunt, 28: his flight officer. ENS Lonnie C. Gibson, 27, both stationed at Oak Harbor, Wash.: and their crewman, PO1c Melvin F. Colby, 31, of nearby Coupeville.

The two fliers aboard the second aircraft involved, LT John K. Sutor and LTJG Peter C. Carrothers, both of Sanford, Fla., Naval Air Station, were rescued in good condition by a helicopter from the carrier USS Enterprise when their RA5c Vigilante reconnaissance plane went down.

The planes, both from the Enterprise, collided about 25 miles south of San Clemente Island.  The Navy said the collision apparently occurred about 11:40 p.m. Thursday, the time they disappeared from the carrier’s radarscope.

Published in The Argus (Fremont, CA) 9 Oct 1966

COLBY, MELVIN F. Jr., Oct 6, 1966

Husband of Katherine Colby of Oak Harbor, WA.  Father of Terri, Donald, Brenda and Melvin F. Colby III, all of Oak Harbor, WA.  Son of Mr. and Mrs. Melvin F. Colby Sr. of Eureka, CA.  Brother of Roy B. Colby of Palo Alto, CA, James H. Colby of USN, Florida.  He was a Petty Officer First Class with the U.S. Navy, which he had been with for 16 years.  He attended Eureka schools.  A native of Honolulu, Hawaii.  Age 31.  Memorial services were held at Ault Field Chapel, U.S.Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Oak Harbor, WA., Oct 11, 1966.

Published in the Humbolt Standard, Friday, Oct 21, 1966, Pg 13.

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From http://www.a3skywarrior.com/