Obituary of Maj Gen Frank Edward Willis, USAF,

Frank was born in 1939, and he grew up in Clinton, Illinois. Always ambitious and hardworking, he juggled three jobs in high school—delivering newspapers, working as a janitor, and as a disc jockey at the local country music station. Still, he managed to get a pilot's license while in high school. Frank enjoyed flying around rural Illinois, and sometimes hopping on his grandfather's steam engine for a short ride from his house to school. He graduated from Clinton Community High School in 1957, and he had the honor of being appointed to the newly formed Air Force Academy, where he earned a Bachelor of Military Science degree and his first set of military flight wings. Frank was in the U.S. Air Force Academy's third graduating class. After graduating in the morning of June 7, 1961, Frank married his true love, Clarice, that same afternoon—not a bad days work! Progressing through the military ranks, Frank achieved the rank of Brigadier General in 1984, and Major General in 1989.Military assignments: August, 1961 – September, 1962: Pilot Training, Vance Air Force Base, Enid, OklahomaSeptember, 1962 – March, 1963: Survival School and KC-135 Aircraft Training, Castle Air Force Base, Merced, CaliforniaMarch, 1963 – January, 1967: KC-135 Co-pilot, 305th Air Refueling Squadron, Bunker Hill AFB, IndianaJanuary, 1967 – December, 1969: KC-135 Aircraft Commander, 909th Air Refueling Squadron at March Air Force Base, CaliforniaJanuary, 1970 – June, 1970: Air Command and Staff College, Norfolk, VirginiaJuly, 1970 – September, 1970: C-123 Training, Columbus Air Force Base, Columbus, OhioSeptember, 1970 – June, 1970: C-123 Aircraft Commander, 315th Tactical Airlift Wing, Tan Son Nhut and Phan Rang Air Bases, South VietnamJuly, 1971 – May, 1974: Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, Headquarters Strategic Air Command, Offutt Air Force, Nebraska•Chief of the Aircraft and Support Branch•Chief of the Programs and Requirements DivisionMay, 1974 – June, 1977: Chief of the Evaluation and Testing Division, Air Force Manpower and Personnel Center, Randolph Air Force Base, TexasJuly, 1977 – June, 1978: Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Fort McNair, VirginiaJune, 1978 – May 1980: 314th Tactical Airlift Wing, Little Rock AFB, Arkansas•Assistant Deputy Commander of Operations•Deputy Commander of Operations•Group Commander, 314th Tactical Airlift GroupJune, 1980 – February, 1983: 374th Tactical Airlift Wing, Clark AB, Philippines•Vice Wing Commander•Wing CommanderFebruary, 1983 – March, 1984: Commander, U.S. Air Force Airlift Center and the 317th Tactical Airlift Wing, Pope Air Force Base, North CarolinaMarch, 1984 – June, 1985: Vice Commander of the Air Force Manpower and Personnel Center and Deputy Assistant, Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower and Personnel for Military Personnel, Randolph Air Force Base, TexasJuly, 1985 – June, 1988: Commandant of the Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, AlabamaJune, 1988 – August, 1989: Vice Commander of the 22nd Air Force, Military Airlift Command, Travis Air Force Base, CaliforniaAugust, 1989 – June, 1993, Deputy Chief of Staff for Requirements, Headquarters Military Airlift Command / Air Mobility Command, Scott Air Force BaseIn his final role as the DCS Requirements for MAC, General Willis was responsible for completing the acquisition of the C-17 and Air Force One; he was also one of the generals who took command shifts on the U.S. Strategic Air Command's Looking Glass airborne command post (which flew on continuous 24x7x365 airborne alert for thirty years). General Willis retired after thirty-two years of service to his country in June 1993.The general is a command pilot with more than 5, 100 flying hours in the KC-135, C-123, T-39, C-130, C-21, C-141, and C-17, including more than 1, 000 combat flying hours during tours in Vietnam, flying the KC-135 and C-123. His military awards and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal; Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster; Meritorious Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster; Air Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters; and Air Force Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster. Trains, trains, trains:After retirement, Frank pursued his first passion of railroading—both model railroads and full size trains. He volunteered for the St. Louis Steam Train Association at the St. Louis Museum of Transportation, spending thousands of hours primarily working on restoring the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway "1522" Steam Locomotive. The 1522 was a 4-8-2 Steam Locomotive built in 1926 and retired in 1959. Frank and his crew restored it back to operational status, and he qualified as a Fireman. The 1522 pulled passenger trains again from 1988 to 2002. Many have reported that the 1522 was "The Loudest Steam Locomotive in the World," which didn't help Frank's already bad hearing.While working on the 1522, and for a few years after the engine was retired, Frank was co-owner of Tinker Town model railroad hobby shop near St. Louis, where true fans of the railroad could share his passion. After moving to Colorado in 2007, Frank began creating his dream model railroad layout (taking up nearly 750 square feet of basement), replicating in exquisite detail, Clinton and DeWitt County, Illinois, by modeling the Illinois Central Railroad. His drawings, plans, and photos would serve a dual purpose, both providing exact replicas of Clinton in his layout, and then as a great reference for the Illinois Central Historical Society. Frank served as the president of the Society for over seven years, finishing his last term at the end of 2016.After a sudden and very short battle with cancer, Frank passed away peacefully on the morning of February 23, 2017. He was a devoted Christian, husband, father, and grandfather. He is survived by his wife of over fifty-five years, Clarice M. (Hull) Willis; three sons and their wives, Michael and Judy, Steven and Bettina, and William and Margo; nine grandchildren, Evan and Joshua (Mike and Judy), Alex, Andrea, Erika, Kristina, and Anna (Steve and Bettina), and Eric and Jessica (Bill and Margo). Memorial Service, 2:00PM, Friday, March 10, 2017 at Forestgate Presbyterian Church, 970 North Gate Boulevard, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921. He will be buried with full military honors at the United States Air Force Academy Cemetery. Donations in lieu of flowers would be preferred to the Illinois Central Historical Society: ICHS, P.O. Box 475, Crete, IL 60417-0475, contactus@icrrhistorical.org, http://www.icrrhistorical.org/moreinfo.html; or Forestgate Presbyterian Church and their associated missions: Forestgate Presbyterian Church, 970 North Gate Boulevard, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921, 719-495-5672, office@forestgate.org.Funeral Home:The Springs Funeral Services~North6575 Oakwood Blvd.Colorado Springs, COUSA 80923 Events Service Friday, March 10, 2017 2:00PM Forestgate Presbyterian Church 970 North Gate Boulevard Colorado Springs, CO 80921 Email: office@forestgate.org Phone: 719-495-5672 Final Resting Place Air Force Academy Cemetery Cemetery Road Air Force Academy, CO 80840