Woodrow Wilson Cecil

© Cheyenne Star

02 Oct 2008

Submitted by: Wanda Purcell

Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Cecil, 91, died on September 24, 2008 at The Remington Club Health Center in San Diego, California. He was born on January 24, 1917, in Durham, Oklahoma to Luella Wylie and William Burley Cecil.

Woody graduated from Durham High School in 1935.

He joined the U.S. Navy in 1938. During his twenty years in the Navy, he served on the USS Lexington {CV-2}, USS Neville {APA-9}, USS Alchiba {AK-23/AKA-6} ABCD-2 {Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock}, USS Valve {ARS-28} and USS Badoeng Strait {CVE-116}.

In November 1942 while aboard the USS Alchiba, the ship was hit and damaged by Japanese torpedoes in the Guadalcanal.

In addition to his sea duty tour, Woody was a Navy recruiter at Lexington, Kentucky. After transferring to the CB's {Navy Construction Battalion}, he served in the 103rd Mobile Construction Battalion on Guam, as the Maintenance Officer at the Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina, and as the Field Superindent for the construction of 1,700 replacement housing units on Guam. Woody's final naval tour was as Maintenance Officer at the US Naval Air Station, Whidbey Island, Washington. He retired from the U.S. Navy in 1958 as a Chief Warrant Officer, CWO-2,CEC.

After retiring from the Navy, Woody partnered with George Dickson to build the first drive-in theater on Whidbey Island, The Blue Fox. Woody and Charlie ran the theater for more than 20 years.

Woody has been a Master Mason since 1964.

He was a member of Whidbey Island Number 15, A.F. & A.M.

He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Charlotte; his parents; two sisters; four brothers; three nieces and a nephew.

He is survived by two nephews, seven nieces, and Charlotte's three grandchildren.

No services are planned. After cremation, a burial at sea is planned.

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