Lloyd L Mitchell

Lloyd L. "Mitch" Mitchell, Lt. Col. USAF Retired, age 88 of Wahoo, died Tuesday, December 22, 2015 in Wahoo. He was born April 11, 1927 in Detroit, Michigan to Lloyd Henry and Adeline (Conshafter) Mitchell. At age 17, Mitch enlisted in the Merchant Marines and served four years as a radio operator during WWII. He enlisted in the United States Air Force and was stationed in Mead, Nebraska where he met Patricia Lilley at a softball game. They were married at the First Presbyterian Church in Wahoo on February 3, 1950. While serving as an officer in the USAF, Lloyd earned a Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering from Oklahoma State University and a Master's Degree in Engineering Management from the University of Utah. Mitch served several temporary duty assignments conducting site surveys in South-East Asia during the Vietnam War. He was part of a team responsible for installing Minuteman Missile launch sites in Montana. He was stationed in Hawaii for four years. Near the end of his career he was appointed to the National Security Agency (NSA) and served as the Deputy Commander of an Air Force Base in Southern Italy. Lloyd had a heart that was air force blue. He was the consummate military officer. He retired from military service from Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. Mitch took a job as a contractor for a computer company and returned to Wahoo in 1980. During his retirement years, he spent countless hours in his woodworking shop painstakingly creating intricate segmented bowls and crafting fine hardwood furniture. He is survived by his wife Patricia of Wahoo; sons Michael Mitchell of Lincoln, and Kenneth (Galina) Mitchell of Wahoo; grandson Dmitry Kolesnikov of Overland Park, Kansas; and brother Leonard LaLonde of Carlsbad, California. He was preceded in death by his parents, sister Jacqueline, and daughter-in-law Claudia Mitchell. Memorials may be made to the First Presbyterian Church or Hospice and Home Health of Saunders County. Military Funeral Honors will be conducted at the graveside by Wahoo American Legion Post #82 and Wahoo Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #4502.