Totten, Melvin Dean 'Mel'

1929 - 2015  (85 years)

• Name	Totten, Melvin Dean 'Mel'
  		Melvin Dean 'Mel' Totten (1929 - 2015) Contributed by Carl Wayne Gray
  Birth	14 Jul 1929	Clay County, Illinois   [1, 2]
  Gender	Male
  Reference Number	TOTT.M001
  _FGRAVE	178809711
  Funeral	Antioch Christian Church, Olney, Richland County, Illinois   [2]
  Military Service	Staff Sergeant, United States Army  [2]
  	On July 19, 1948, Mel reported to Fort Knox in Kentucky as a new Army recruit. During his first enlistment, he was stationed at Camp Cavite, Philippines, receiving the National Defense Service Medal awarded to him for honorable active military service as a member of the armed forces of the United States During the Korean War period. Mel re-enlisted for six more years on December 7, 1950. During his second enlistment, he served in Germany, receiving the Army Occupation Medal for serving as part of the Army of Occupation. He mustered out of the Army as a Staff Sergeant in the 522 Armored Engineering Co. at Fort Knox on December 7, 1956, going home to farm and start a family with his new bride. Mel has been a member of the VFW and American Legion for many years.
  		Army of Occupation Medal, United States Army and United States Air Force
  		Military Service Ribbons, Totten, Melvin Dean 'Mel' (1929-2015) Contributed by Carl Wayne Gray
  		National Defense Service Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		United States Army Prior to the establishment of the "Department of the Army Emblem", there was no official display item to identify the Army. The Seal had traditionally been used to authenticate documents only and was not authorized for public display. In recognizing the need to provide a display item, the Secretary of the Army approved the emblem design as the…
  		Army of Occupation Medal, United States Army and United States Air Force
  		Fort Knox, Hardin County, Kentucky
  		National Defense Service Medal, United States Armed Forces
  		United States Army
  Death	5 Jun 2015	Richland County Memorial Hospital, Olney, Richland County, Illinois   [2]
  Burial	Olive Branch Cemetery, Olney, Richland County, Illinois   [2]
  Person ID	I17221	Carl Wayne Gray Research
  Last Modified	5 May 2023

  
  

  Father	Totten, Dewey Hobart,   b. 11 Mar 1899, Illinois d. 21 Mar 1983, Richland County Memorial Hospital, Olney, Richland County, Illinois (Age 84 years)
  Mother	Ingram, Lillie Esther,   b. 9 May 1896, Knox County, Indiana d. 24 Nov 1984 (Age 88 years)
  Marriage	23 Jan 1919  [1, 2, 3, 4]
  Age at Marriage	He : 19 years and 10 months - She : 22 years and 8 months.
  Family ID	F4360	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Henry, P.P.
  Children	1. Totten, B.   2. Totton, T.   3. Totten, R.   4. Totten, C.   5. Totten, M.
  Family ID	F7688	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	31 Jan 2023

  
  

• Event Map

  Funeral - - Antioch Christian Church, Olney, Richland County, Illinois  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Notes

  Mel grew up in Decker Township. He and Pat, his wife of 58 years moved to the family farm in Decker in 1993 after living in Noble for many years. Mel and Pat would celebrate their 59th wedding anniversary on June 21, 2015. Mel graduated from Noble Community High School in 1947. His class composition photograph is one of the earliest hung in the hallways of the school that closed in 2014. He is a Veteran of the United States Army and a retired Olney merchant. On July 19, 1948 Mel reported to Ft. Knox in Kentucky as a new Army recruit. During his first enlistment he was stationed at Camp Cavite, Philippines receiving the National Defense Service Medal awarded to him for honorable active military service as a member of the armed forces of the United States during the Korean War period. Mel re-enlisted for six more years on December 7, 1950. During his second enlistment he served in Germany receiving the Army Occupation Medal for serving as part of the Army of Occupation. He mustered out of the Army as a Staff Sergeant in the 522 Armored Engineering Co. at Ft. Knox on December 7, 1956 going home to farm and start a family with his new bride. Mel has been a member of the VFW and American Legion for many years. Mel and Pat setup housekeeping on the Gallager Place on Higgin Switch Road in 1957. During the winter of 1959 Mel worked part-time at B. F. Goodrich in Olney. In 1960 he started working full-time. The company transferred him to the Effingham store where he worked primarily as the roadside service technician changing tires on heavy equipment that was building Interstate 70. He was then transferred to the Vandalia store where he was promoted to Bookkeeper. He transferred in 1966 to the OOlney Store as the Bookkeeper and was promoted to Store Manager in 1971, managing the store until the company closed most retail stores. During his tenure with B.F. Goodrich, Mel earned many sales awards. He then worked for Marathon Tire in Olney until his retirement in 2000. Mel continued to work Wednesday mornings until 2014 processing paperwork to return tires for retread.

  
  

• Sources

  [S1453] Ancestry.com, 1930 Federal Census, Noble, Richland County, Illinois, District 11, page 4a, (http://search.ancestry.com/Browse/BookView.aspx?dbid=6224&iid=4584635_00133&sid=&gskw=), none. (Reliability: 2). [S2574] Summers-Kistler Funeral Homes, Obituary, Totten, Melvin Dean, (http://www.summers-kistler.com/obituaries/obituary-listings?obId=508995#/obituaryInfo), none. (Reliability: 2). [S2572] http://www.findagrave.com, Obituary, Totten, James F., (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/145146152/james-franklin-totten) (Reliability: 2). [S2575] http://www.findagrave.com, Headstone, Totten, Dewey H. and Lillie E., (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/32518268/dewey-hobart-totten), none. (Reliability: 2).