Arender, H. L. (Jim), 73
November 2012

Arender, H. L. (Jim), 73, formerly of Santa Fe, NM, died November 14, 2012 at the Veterans Hospital in Bay Pines, Florida. Born in Stillwater, OK, Jim was an Army Veteran, serving as a Sergeant in the 82nd Airborne Division. He was a member of the U.S. Army Parachute Team and was a World Champion parachutist.

François (Frank) Xavier Chevrier
September 2012

François (Frank) Xavier Chevrier, 81, President of FXC Corporation and Guardian Parachute, passed away suddenly on September 17, 2012.

For over 60 years, Frank had been very active in the military life support equipment industry.

Frank, from Montreal, Canada, joined the Canadian Air Force in his teens. He came to the U.S.A. in 1962 and began working in the aerospace industry in Southern California.

John Coppe
August 2012

Mr. John Coppe, 73, passed away on August 28, 2012 at Martin Hospital in Stuart, Florida. Born in Chicago, Illinois, Mr. Coppe had previously lived in Indiantown, as well as Jensen Beach, Florida for the past forty years.

Gene Paul Thacker
August 2012

Gene Paul Thacker passed away early August 20th. The National Skydiving Museum and the entire skydiving community has truly lost a true icon of the sport—museum trustee, family man, competitor, DZO, Hall of Fame member, friend and so much more. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Thacker family and the entire Raeford clan.

Bill Newell
2012

Bill Newell, the founder of the Star Crest Recipient Awards, passed away August 5, 2012. Throughout his battle with cancer, his daughter Rachael Newell was by his side and his son Danny was with him at the very end. He was 71 years old.

Howard White
1937-2012

Howie began jumping at Orange Sport Parachuting Center (later Jumptown) in 1965 and soon joined the instruction staff.

Ted Strong, D-16
4/7/1936-10/14/2011

Ted Strong, D-16
4/7/1936-10/14/2011

A visionary from the beginning and a man with an enormous heart passed away on Friday. Ted Strong was inducted into the National Skydiving Museum's Hall of Fame in 2010, its inaugural celebration. Ted began parachuting in 1958 and trained jumpers at the US Military Academy at West Point until his discharge in 1961. That year, he founded Strong Enterprises, a manufacturer of parachute equipment now based in Orlando, Florida. Ted logged more than 4,900 jumps. A multiple patent holder, Strong designed and built the first tandem system (the most common method for introducing people to the sport) in 1984. Ted Strong will be dearly missed.

Erwin Wuester, a Riverdale native who was a leading authority on the design of military parachutes, has died.

The textile engineer died May 5 after a brief illness. He was 80 and lived in Lowell, Mass.

Wilfred J. A. "Squeak" Charette, who was born November 14, 1936, passed away May 9, 2010, at his home in Tampa. Among his many achievements, he was one of the original Golden Knights, serving 11 years in the U.S. Army.

He is survived by his beloved wife, Amy Charette.