Commander Frederick P. Eylar, USN (Ret.), died of lung cancer at Santee, CA, on 13 May 2008. He was 75 years old. A native of Aberdeen, OH, “Fred” enlisted in the Air Force and later attended the Naval Academy Preparatory School before entering the Naval  Academy. The Lucky Bag pegged Fred well; “he was a true friend to those who knew him.” He was a member of the 24th Company.

Upon graduation with the Class of 1956, he served in CORAL SEA (CV-43) operating out of Norfolk, VA. He was then assigned to the pre-commissioning crew of RANGER (CV-61)and was a plank owner on this carrier. Subsequent assignments at sea were on destroyers: NEW (DD-818), staff officer attached to Commander Destroyer Squadron Four in Charleston, SC, operations officer on REEVES (DLG-24) and executive officer on BRAINE (DD-630). Assignments ashore included instructor duty at the Naval Academy, oceanography studies at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, A, director of the Navy Shore Management Survey section in Treasure Island, A, and assistant operations officer for the Commander U.S. Naval Forces, Marianas.

He retired in July 1976 as the senior shore patrol officer in San Diego, CA. In retirement, Fred worked as the San Diego representative for a Los Angeles food distribution company, as a consultant for a Santee, CA, engineering contractor and as a tax preparation consultant for H&R Block in Santee. He was a past member of the Santee Kiwanis Club.

Fred is survived by his wife of 49 1/2 years, the former Roberta Lawless; one son, Dan Eylar of Lubbock, TX; two daughters, Marion Eylar Vadney of Vina, CA, and Emily Eylar Bailey of Shadyside, OH; four grandchildren, Holly and Kari Vadney, and Kaitlyn and Joseph Eylar; and a sister, Ann Delia Lax of Cincinnati, OH.

Frank Kelso ’56 &The Eylar Family