Daniel V. Waldoch, one of four Forest Lake High School graduates from the same class who became pilots during World War II, has died.Waldoch, a lifetime resident of Lino Lakes, died Friday, Feb. 6 after a year-long battle with cancer. He was 80.
Waldoch graduated from Forest Lake High School in 1941 and was among the many area residents who volunteered for military service in the months following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the United Statesí entry in World War II.
Waldoch translated his long-running interest in flying to military duty. When he graduated in 1941, he used a $48 gift from his father, William, to take eight hours of flying lessons.
Flying became a lifelong passion for the Lino Lakes man.
He enlisted in the Navy in 1942 and reported for active duty in August of that year. He completed flight training school in Pensacola, FL in December of 1943. He spent most of 1944 at airfields in the states before leaving for the Pacific Theater in February of 1945.
He spent the final months of the war aboard the aircraft carrier USS Essex. He flew Hellcat F6Fs during the final seven months of the war.
Waldoch was a photo pilot. He flew 53 sorties from the deck of Essex assessing results of bombing raids.
During the final months of the war, Waldoch flew photo recon missions over Okinawa and Japan.
After the war, Waldoch teamed with Clyde Ramsden, one of his classmates and a World War II pilot, to operate a flying school and an airstrip on the Waldoch property. The business operated for a short time before Waldoch went on to fly as a commercial pilot in the Twin Cities. He was also active in the Waldoch Farm operation.
Funeral details
A funeral service for Daniel V. Waldoch was Monday, Feb. 9 at St. Joseph Catholic Church, Lino Lakes. Interment was at the St. Joseph Church Cemetery.
He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Lucille; four children, Daniel (Debbie) Waldoch Jr., Mary Jo (Jeff) Joyer, Kathy Ann (Blake) Rivard, and Mark (Diana) Waldoch, all of Lino Lakes; 16 grandchildren; one great-grandson; three brothers John (Doris) Waldoch, George (Ruth) Waldoch and Raymond (Shirley) Waldoch; two sisters Leona (Herb) Maassen and Lucille Cartier; and one sister-in-law, Lucille Waldoch.
He was preceded in death by his parents, William and Anna Waldoch; one brother, Joseph, and one sister, Helen Meehan.
Memorials are preferred to the American Cancer Society, the Anoka County 4-H Camp Salie in Linwood, or the St. Joseph Catholic Church Parish.
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