Major Earl R. Winters, Sr. passed away on December 20, 2018 surrounded by loved ones at his home in Apex, North Carolina. Earl was born on September 27, 1924 in Gurnsey County, Oxford Township, Ohio to Asa E. and Nellie B. Winters, the second of six sons.
Earl was drafted into the US Army in 1944 during WWII where he took basic training at Ft. Knox, Kentucky in Armored Infantry and Communications. He arrived in Europe in January 1945, and was assigned to the 609th Tank Destroyer Battalion, a unit of Patton's 3rd Army at Bastogne. He then served in the 22nd Transportation Unit until January of 1949 when he was promoted to Second Lieutenant on a Mustang Commission. In September of 1950 he was shipped to Korea as a Forward Observer with the 52nd Field Artillery Battalion, 24th Division, the first combat unit to enter the Korean War. He served in Japan, Canada, Austria and in 1962 in France at SHAPE Headquarters where he was promoted to Major. He finished his military career in Wurzburg, Germany as Post Transportation Officer.
Earl retired from the service in 1964 to Baltimore, Maryland, where he began a second career as Export Manager and Government Sales Representative for Montgomery Ward, from which he retired in 1985. Upon retirement Earl and his wife Elsie moved to Palm Bay, Florida where they enjoyed life for 22 years before relocating to Apex, North Carolina.
Earl was active through the years in youth activities in schools, the United Methodist Church and The Boys Scouts of America with both of his sons becoming Eagle Scouts. He was a lifetime member of The American Legion and The Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Earl enjoyed reading and smoking his pipe, but most of all metal detecting. For the 22 years they lived in Florida, he would be at the beach before dawn spending the day finding treasures from pennies to pieces of eight washed up from shipwrecks off of the coast.
He is preceded in death by his loving wife of 68 years, Elsie, his brothers, Craig, Paul, Herbert, Derbert, and Kenneth, his great-grandson Taylor and his son-in-law John.
Surviving are his children, Earl Jr. and Marsha, Eugene and Patricia, Deborah, Denyse and Louis, his grandchildren, David, Michael (Erika), Christopher (Beth), Kimberly (Bobby), Carlee (James), Jamie (Daryl), Nancy (Derek), fifteen great-grandchildren, many loving family members and friends and his granddog and best buddy Thor.
A celebration of Earl's life will be held Saturday, March 23, 2019 from 4:00pm - 6:00pm at Apex Funeral Home, 550 W. Williams Street, Apex, NC. Interment will be held at Arlington National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The USO, Any Soldier.com, Gary Sinise Foundation or Wreaths Across America.
Arrangements are with Apex Funeral Home, 550 W. Williams Street, Apex, NC. www.ApexFuneral.net
