Cover photo for Francis Wilkie's Obituary
1923 Francis 2020

Francis Wilkie

July 23, 1923 — November 10, 2020

Lt. Colonel Francis E. (Jud) Wilkie, USAF, died on Nov. 10, 2020 in Sebring, Ohio at the age of 97. Jud was born in Tuxedo, NC in 1923. Jud is proceeded in death by his wife of 70 years, Carleta Jennings Wilkie, his parents, Donovan Gilmer and Lela Louise (English) Wilkie, his daughter, Norma Wilkie Wiehrdt  and his four younger sisters, Gerry (Shipman), Betty (Justus), and Carolyn Wilkie. Jud is survived by youngest sister, Lynne Wilkie of Hendersonville, NC and two children, Laura Wilkie (Chet) Shoemaker of Canton, OH and Mark (Mary) Wilkie of Waynesville, OH. Jud and Carleta had 9 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren. Grandchildren are Jason (Jennifer) Wiehrdt of Waco, TX; Dr. Jessica Wiehrdt DVM of O’Fallon, IL, Ryan (Soraya) Wiehrdt of Naples, FL; Alice (Mark) Johnston of North Canton, OH; Adam (Anna) Shoemaker of Houston, TX, Amada (Jon) Welch of Jamestown, OH; Benjamin Wilkie, Scott Wilkie and Kathryn Wilkie of Waynesville, OH He is also survived by his loving wife of the last five years, Carolyn Quay.

Jud began his Air Force career in 1943, receiving his commission as a 2nd Lt. in January 1945. He was trained as a bombardier and a B-29 flight engineer but did not get overseas to Okinawa until 1946 after the war ended. He later served in many stateside locations and in Vietnam and Alaska. He retired from the Air Force as a Lt. Colonel in 1969 to accept a position in marketing with Diebold, Inc. in Canton, OH. After 16 years with Diebold he retired a second time. They moved to his hometown of Hendersonville, NC and lived there for 10 years before returning to Canton.

In 2004, Jud and Carleta moved to the Copeland Oaks retirement village in Sebring, OH and became active participants. Carleta passed away on March 26, 2014 and is buried at Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery in Rittman, OH where Dad will also be buried on Monday, November 23, 2020. Family only at services due to COVID-19 restrictions. Jud and Carleta and Jud and Carolyn were all members at Union Avenue Methodist Church in Alliance, OH.

Memorials may be made to the Oaks Foundation, 800 South 15th St., Sebring, OH 44672.  Arrangements are entrusted to Dean’s Funeral Home Sebring, Ohio.

To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Francis Wilkie, please visit our flower store.

Service Schedule

Past Services

Funeral Service

Sunday, November 22, 2020

Starts at 2:00 pm (Central time)

Dean’s Funeral Home

256 W Ohio Ave, Sebring, OH 44672

Enter your phone number above to have directions sent via text. Standard text messaging rates apply.

Burial

Monday, November 23, 2020

Starts at 9:30 am (Central time)

Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery

10175 Rawiga Rd, Seville, OH 44273

Enter your phone number above to have directions sent via text. Standard text messaging rates apply.

Guestbook

Visits: 23

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the
Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Send Flowers

Send Flowers

Plant A Tree

Plant A Tree