Colonel William Franklin "Bill" Palmer, USAF, (RET.), "F111Bill" was raised at Witcher Creek, WV. He graduated from West Virginia Tech in 1952. He was commissioned as a military pilot, at Laredo AFB, class 53-G. A highly decorated Air Force fighter pilot, his career spanned 29 years, which included unaccompanied tours in Okinawa, the Cuban Crisis, Spain and 147 combat missions in Vietnam. He served accompanied tours in Germany and Turkey as well as stateside assignments in South Carolina, Indiana, Virginia, North Carolina, Nevada, Florida, Alabama, and Texas.
Bill obtained his Master's Degree from USC in 1975. He was a 50 year member of the Chelyan Lodge No. 158 A.F. & A.M., Scottish Rite Shriners in West Virginia. Following his Air Force career, he worked at the Nevada Test Site for 13 years before fully retiring in 1994 in Las Vegas, NV. He is survived by his wife, Delores "Dodi" Palmer, daughter, CindyBeth Palmer Lynch (Sam) and twin sons Cass (Helen) and Sam (Heather) and Grand kids: Sarah, Laura; Katie, Danielle, Matthew; and Taylor, Kaela, Catriona.