Smokejumper Obituary: Catlin, Del F. (McCall 1947)

Authors

National Smokejumper Association

Files

Obituary

Del died April 17, 2015. He graduated from high school in Oakley, Idaho, and went into the US Army as a paratrooper in the 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment. Their successful combat jump on Corregidor February 16, 1945, earned the unit a Presidential Unit Citation for the liberation of "The Rock." After the war Del attended the University of Idaho for a short time before joining the McCall Smokejumpers in 1947. He became project leader at McCall in 1957 and continued at that position until 1977 when he was forced to stop jumping by the "40-years-old" policy that was in effect at the time. Del ended up with 179 jumps of which 107 were fire jumps. After retirement from the USFS, he went to work managing the Hollenbeak Ranch for another 30 years. Del's wife of 66 plus years, Joye, passed away on April 14, just three days before Del.

Identifier

Catlin_Del-F_McCall_1947

Publication Date

April 2015

Keywords

Smokejumping; Smokejumpers -- United States; National Smokejumper Association; Wildfire fighters; Obituaries

Disciplines

Forest Management

Recommended Citation

National Smokejumper Association, "Smokejumper Obituary: Catlin, Del F. (McCall 1947)" (2015). Smokejumper Obituaries. 724.
https://dc.ewu.edu/smokejumper_bios/724