CHARLES E. STIVER SR.

Charles E. Stiver, Sr., of Cape Girardeau died September 21, 1999. He was born in Cape on November 19, 1914. He attended the old Normal grade and high schools in Cape and was graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism in 1936 with a bachelor's degree. He was a copywriter for Famous-Barr in St. Louis, a staff writer for RADIO TODAY magazine and a member of the Public Relations Department of Johns-Manville in New York City.

He entered the Navy at the outbreak of World War II as the youngest Navy Lt(jg) commissioned in New York City. He became a naval aviator and was an instructor, patrol plane commander and experimental test pilot. He completed active duty as a test pilot at the Naval Air Test Center at the Patuxent River Naval Air Station in Maryland in 1949, when he returned to civilian life as a sales representative for Marquette Cement in Cape. He continued his service in the Naval Air Reserve, serving as commanding officer of the Air Reserve unit in Cape, of VP-921 in St. Louis and of the Air Wing Staff in Memphis. He served twice on all-Navy promotion boards at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. He retired after 30 years of service with the rank of Captain. He remained a member of the Retired Officers Association for 27 years, as well as a member of the local Masonic Temple.

He began playing in area golf tournaments at the age of 12 and won many local and regional championships. He devoted himself to golf for more than 70 years. He also won the District high school tennis championship and was second in State doubles in 1932. He was from one of the pioneer families of this area. His grandfather, Major James F. Brooks, was an early civil engineer in Southern Missouri working on the construction of the first railroads and of the Little River Drainage system. He also established the first long distance telephone line in Missouri, between Cape and his kitchen in Jackson. His father, Chris Stiver, came to Missouri as the construction superintendent for the first Marquette Cement plant and later served as the City Engineer as well as Marquette's sales representative. His mother, Gladys Brooks Stiver, was a noted flower gardener, writer and co-founder of the Rose Garden. She landscaped many areas, including the River Floodwall. She also was active in politics, serving as a member of the State executive committee of the Republican party.

He was married in Cape Girardeau on November 24, 1965 to the former LaFern McLain Cissell, who survives. She was a long-time teacher in the Perryville and Cape elementary schools. Other survivors include his daughter, Dr. Sharon Brooks Stiver, a former child clinical psychologist in St. Louis who now has her own general contracting company; his son, Charles "Skip" Stiver, Jr., a tax lawyer with Greenberg Traurig in Miami, Florida; and an adopted son, Michael J. Cissell, a vice president for Maritz Performance Improvement in St. Louis. He also is survived by five grandchildren and three great grandchildren. Friends may call at the Ford & Sons Funeral Home at 1001 North Mount Auburn Road on Thursday, September 23, between 5:00 and 9:00 pm, and funeral services will be held at Ford & Sons on Friday, September 24 at 10:00 am with Rev. Hugh Stewart of the First Presbyterian Church officiating. Burial will be in Lorimier Cemetery. Pall bearers will be Charles E. Stiver, Jr., Michael J. Cissell, Norman Hayden, Christopher S. Cissell, Benjamin P. Cissell, Clifford Marvin. The burial service will be accompanied by full military honors. The family requests that memorial donations be made to the Shriners Hospitals, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army or the Safe House for Women.