CMSgt (Ret) Richard
Andrew Strouse
MY OBITUARY - CMSgt (Ret) Richard Andrew Strouse (10 June 1941 – 3 March 2022 ) Born in Scott County, Indiana, on the "Strouse Farm" near Leota, Indiana. Mother, Mary Fay Tumey (Strouse) Smith, from Dallas, Texas. Father, Ira W. Strouse of Scott County, Indiana, his brother Bill from Bedford, TX, and step-father, John Smith, of Seymour, Indiana. all deceased. He attended his early grade school years between Texas and Indiana. His most memorable was the first grade at "Ole Number Six" one-room school house in Leota, Indiana. He later attended Danville, Indiana schools and graduated in 1960. After graduation he joined the U.S. Air Force and married Connie Ann Walker of Plainfield and Washington, Indiana (his high school sweetheart), on 11 Dec 1960. Richard and Connie have been married 61 years and raised three sons: Andy, Toney, and Russell. His first duty assignments took him to Virginia, Vietnam and Korea while in the transportation career field. In early 1968 he cross-trained into the aircraft loadmaster career field and following technical school was assigned at Dover AFB, Delaware to the 39th Military Airlift Squadron, flying on the C-133A Cargomaster aircraft. When the C-133 was retired in 1971 he was assigned to the 9th Military Airlift Squadron, flying on the new C-5A Galaxy aircraft. In 1979 he was assigned to the 436th Military Airlift Wing, Aircrew Stan/Eval section. In 1983 he was picked by Headquarters, Military Airlift Command, Scott AFB, Illinois, to become the Chief C-5 Loadmaster of the command. In 1988 he assumed the position of Command Chief Loadmaster, Military Airlift Command, responsible for all 2,200 aircraft loadmasters in the Air Force. He retired in October 1990 with 30 years and 21 days of active military service. After military retirement he was hired by Evergreen International Airlines (EIA) as a Operations Agent/Loadmaster, assigned at Dover AFB, Delaware, working military contract flights with the USAF. One of his proudest moments was when he received "The Civilian Desert Shield and Desert Storm Medal" by General Fogleman, Commander of Air Mobility Command (AMC), when he participated in aerial flights into the war zone of the middle-east in B-747 aircrafts. He was one of bniy 206 Evergreen aircrew members to receive this medal. He was later selected as the "Chief Loadmaster", Evergreen Intl Airlines, and served in that capacity up to his retirement in 1998. After retirement he had only one part-time job that he really enjoyed and that was at "Old Mill Hardware", across from "Moore's Lake" in Dover, Delaware. His hobbies were restoring three old John Deere tractors, two Corvette's and his beautiful Chevy 409. In the winter months he worked and played with his Lionel trains. He enjoyed his "Purple Martins" and other wild life. He loved his dogs and was most content when he was working on his projects and yard. He was a member of the Three Stones Church in Dover, Delaware. He will be buried at "Sharon Hills Memorial Park", in the Garden of Honor" section with full military honors.
A funeral service will be held 1 p.m., Friday, March 11, 2022 at Pippin Funeral Home, 119 W. Camden-Wyoming Ave., Wyoming, DE where friends may call after 12 p.m.
Online condolences may be sent to www.pippinfuneralhome.com