~ IN MEMORY ~
USAF veteran, SO/NWA Capt. Larry
Willard Fussell
December 2, 1947 ~ May 10, 2019
Notification with the passing of retired
Southern/Northwest pilot Capt. Larry Willard Fussell, age 71. Captain
Fussell began his commercial flying career with Southern Airways and due mergers
would have retired with Northwest Airlines. He is survived by his wife
Françoise, his sons and his grandchildren.
To view the obituary online please visit
To the best of my knowledge, personal condolences may be sent
to the family at
210 Playground Rd., Walhalla SC 29691-1532.
Thank you,
~ Carol for the PCN
Obituary for Mr. Larry Willard Fussell
Larry "Willard" Fussell died on Friday, May 10th, 2019 at his
home in Walhalla, SC and will be dearly missed.
The Life Celebration for Larry will be held on Thursday, May
16th, 2019 at 3pm at Crystal Lake in Mountain Rest, SC. The address for the
event is 421 Paradise Cove Drive, Mountain Rest, SC 29664. Larry would not want
anyone dressed up, so please come wearing casual attire or dress comfortably for
the (outdoor) event at the lake.
Larry was born in Americus, GA to George Fussell and Maude
Ölkers on December 2nd, 1947. He was a good student and enjoyed playing
basketball for his school. He moved with his mother to Walhalla, a city founded
by his German ancestors, for high school where he was a star player on the high
school basketball team.
He knew from a young age that his calling wasn't to be a
farmer as many others in his small town planned to be, but rather he wanted to
be a pilot. He decided to go to the University of South Carolina for their Air
Force ROTC program. In 1970, he graduated with a B.S. in Psychology from the
University of South Carolina where he met his wife, Francoise Mary Hipp of
Beaufort, SC. After much cajoling, he convinced Francoise to marry him, a
decision that would keep them together and happy for the next 49 years. Lacking
time and money for a honeymoon, they moved to Louisiana for Francoise to
complete work on a Masters Degree at LSU and soon afterward, Larry traveled to
Columbus, MS to attend Air Force flight school.
Larry flew KC-135 refueling planes for the Air Force. He was
deployed several times as part of Operation Young Tiger in Thailand during the
Vietnam War.
After the births of his first two sons, he found a position at
a small airline which, through a series of mergers, is now called Delta
Airlines. He flew millions of passengers safely around North America for almost
30 years.
While not flying above the clouds, he enjoyed spending time
with his family, vacationing at Edisto Island, drinking coffee, watching Andy
Griffith, and supporting his wife and sons in any way he was able. Buying gifts
for Larry was nearly impossible. He wasn't big on possessions and was happiest
when he was the one doing the giving, whether it was a favor, a steak, or a
surprisingly stiff cocktail.
Larry is survived by his wife, Françoise, his four sons,
Christopher, wife Robin, Michael, wife Melissa, Patrick, wife Joselyn, Thomas,
partner Mandolin, and his nine grandchildren, Emily, Daniel, Ethan, Alexa, Lily,
Presley, William, Astrid, and (one-month-old) Bear. He is also survived by dogs
and grand-dogs Zuzu, Beau, Groot, Rosie, Walter, Darwin and Willie
Nelson.
He cared deeply for children and dogs alike so the family
requests that any memorial charity donations be sent to St. Jude's Hospital or
the ASPCA.
No comments:
Post a Comment