Dennis Lee Eilers

Memorial funeral services for Lt. Col. Dennis "Denny" Lee Eilers, 27, will be held on Saturday, June 30, 2012, at the First United Church of Christ in Tipton with the Rev. David Lorenzen officiating. There will be a time of visiting with friends and family that morning starting at 9:30 am until 10:30 am. Following the memorial service Denny will be given military honors at the Tipton Masonic Cemetery by the Tipton Veterans of Foreign War (Post #2537) and the Tipton American Legion (Post #123). Dennis Lee Eilers was born on December 6, 1938 and was the elder son of Walter F. and Leone M. Wentzel Eilers. Denny, as he was known by friends and family, was born and raised on a farm in the Tipton area. He was active in many sports and school activities and graduated from the Tipton High School in 1957 and also graduated from Coe College in 1961. Denny was united in marriage to Belva Schnack in 1961. Denny always dreamed of being a pilot and following the completion of the ROTC program at Coe he enlisted in the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War. Denny's final flight was on Christmas Eve, 1965, when his AC-47 aircraft was shot down over Laos. Although Denny's status was changed from MIA to KIA in 1977 nearly 4 é