Carl Beetham - Obituary

Carl Beetham was one of those who made his generation the 'Great Generation'. He was born on May 11, 1918 in Lancaster, Wisconsin and grew up working long days on the family farm. Although the work was hard, the winters cold, and there was no indoor bathroom, he always said that he appreciated the fact that they always had enough to eat on the farm and could share their food with others. He started his college career in 1936 at the State Teachers College, now a part of the University of Wisconsin, in Platteville and earned his bachelor's degree in science in 1941. From those years he was fond of showing his children a small, old notebook that he had kept where he listed his first year college expenses at the University, written in pencil, and including every single expense for that year from tuition, room and board (even including chewing gum), down to books, supplies, and travel. The total spent for that year of college was $482. Following graduation he volunteered as an Army Aviation Cadet starting flight training in May 1941 and received his Reserve Commission as an Army Aviator in January 1942. Throughout the war Carl flew Army cargo planes, including the C-47 and the larger DC-4, and flew dangerous missions out of India to take supplies to the allied armies fighting the Japanese in Southeast Asia. In 1945 Carl transitioned into Army fighter aircraft and flew the P-40 Warhawk and his favorite aircraft of all, the P-51 Mustang. One of Carl's prized possessions was a fighter aircraft check-out sheet signed by Chuck Yeager who was serving as the Check-Pilot for that aircraft. By the end of the war over half of Carl's Army Aviation Cadet graduating class had died in the conflict. In 1948 Carl made major changes in his life first in marrying his love, Wanda Hook, of Youngstown, Ohio, and then transferring to the new U.S. Air Force as a Reserve Officer and continuing his military career as a pilot and as a meteorology Officer for the Air Force. He and Wanda shared their entire life together having three children - Janet, Patti, and Ron. Carl had always been interested in the study of weather and continued his education in Meteorology taking courses at the University of Hawaii and at specialized training schools available in the Air Force. Carl continued to serve both in the United States and overseas until his retirement as a Lieutenant Colonel in September 1963. At that time Carl settled his family in Maryland and went right to work in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as a Meteorologist conducting studies in new weather prediction technologies. He also considered himself lucky as he as he was able to continue to fly as a research technician aboard NOAA P-3 Orion research aircraft up until his retirement from the Federal Government in 1972. He spent his retirement years in his home in Maryland appreciating his wife and family, the fact that he had survived the war when so many of his friends had not, and the peace that he enjoyed just working in his favorite place - outside in the large yard and woods surrounding his house. Carl passed away peacefully in the hospital on August 9, 2011. He will be buried in Arlington Cemetery on November 30th, there with his beloved wife Wanda, and many other members of that Great Generation." He was truly loved and will be dearly missed.