Earl Leroy Stiffler
November 14, 1928 to September 21, 2014

Earl L. Stiffler passed away peacefully to be with his wife Adele, on Sunday, September 21, 2014. He was born and raised in the small Pennsylvania town of Hollidaysburg, 7 miles from Altoona, Pa. After graduating from high School he enlisted in the U. S. Navy and served in the Lighter-Than-Air Service (Blimps). Following discharge from the navy he enrolled in the engineering program at Pennsylvania State College. He then attended an airline training school in Kansas City, Missouri. After completing this school he was hired by Eastern Air Lines as an Operations Agent at Washington, D.C. National Airport and worked his way up to Operations Supervisor. He was then promoted to flight dispatcher based at NYC's LaGuardia and Kennedy Airports. While in NYC he met and married his wife, our mother, Adele, and had two children.

In 1969 the office was moved to Miami where he lived with his family for the next 23 years. While in Miami he was promoted to Operational Planner in the System Control Center which was called, by former astronaut and EAL president Frank Borman, "Mission Control". He retired in 1986 after 36 years with Eastern Airlines.
Following retirement he volunteered as a Docent at the Miami Metro Zoo until Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and relocated to Mount Dora, at the Country Club.

He was active in the Kiwanis Club of Mount Dora and was past president of the Mount Dora Kiwanis Club, past Lt. Governor Florida Kiwanis, past Trustee of the Florida Kiwanis Foundation. He was also a member of the Country Club of Mount Dora, the Retired Pilots Assoc. of Eastern Air Lines, Retired Eastern Air Lines Employee Assn. and Eustis Elks Club. He was also a licensed pilot and aircraft dispatcher.

He lost his wife of 44 years 9 years ago (in 2005), but has been reunited with her to live together for eternity. He is survived by his daughter, Cheryl Ann Heinbaugh; sons, William Reid Stiffler and Richard Anderson; and grandchildren, Steven and Michael Churchman, Richard and Ashley Anderson.

Services will be held on Friday, October 3, 2014 at 10:00am at First United Methodist Church of Mount Dora - 439 East Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, Florida 32757.

Military Honors will follow at 2:00pm at Florida National Cemetery at 6502 SW 102nd Avenue, Bushnell, Florida 33513.