John William Dell

1914 - 2012

John William Dell 
November 28, 1914 - January 23, 2012
John W. Dell, a retired 30 year Air Force/Army Veteran, passed away in Mesa, AZ at the age of 97. He was born in Clinton, Indiana and was the youngest of four brothers and two sisters.
Upon the death of his mother in 1914, the family was separated and John was made a ward of Vermillion County, IN, spending his childhood at the "Brightside" Julia E. Works Training School at Plymouth, IN.  He graduated from high school in 1935, and attended Purdue University until his enlistment in the Army in April 1941.  He obtained his first class amateur radio license in 1936, which he kept active throughout his life.  John's first Army assignment was with the 38th Infantry Division as a radio operator at Camp Shelby, MS.  He married Elizabeth M. Culpepper on March 15, 1942.  He was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the Signal Corps in August of 1942, and was assigned commander of the 1102 Signal Company at Hill Field, UT.  His unit was shipped out in 1942 as part of General Chanult's "Flying Tigers" in China.  There he remained until the surrender by Japan in 1945.  After World War II,  he was given a commission in the Army and attended the Signal Corps Advanced Training School.  In 1947, he accepted a commission with the Air Force, with duties at the Pentagon, Japan, Hawaii, and a Liaison with AT&T, RCA, and Western Union.  John's last assignment was command of the Defense Communications Agency in Fort Carson, CO, in support of N.O.R.A.D. in the Cheyenne Mountain Underground Operations Center.  He was awarded the Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster and Numerous Unit Citations during his service career. 
He retired in February of 1970, and accepted a position with Pacific Telephone Company in San Francisco, where he worked for 10 years.  His first wife passed away in July of 1979. He married Milada A. Vitak on August 11, 1981, and moved to Santa Maria, CA in retirement.  His second wife passed away in September of 2011. He resided at Merrill Gardens in Santa Maria from 2008 until he moved to Mesa, AZ to be in the care of his family. He was a 26 year Elks member. 
He is survived by numerous nieces and nephews, and will be deeply missed by all that had the fortune of knowing him.
At his request, no services will be held.  Cremation and scattering of his ashes at sea will be carried out by The Neptune Society.