Jon R. Alexander, Lt Col, USAF, Ret., age 70, died on December 31st, 2014, surrounded by his wife, Trish, and twin sons, Jim and Steve Alexander.
Jon was born in Buffalo, N.Y, in 1944 to parents Glenn and Bertina Alexander. After graduation from the University of Alabama in 1966, Jon followed his father’s footsteps in to the United States Air Force and entered Navigator Training. After a deployment to Vietnam in the C-130 Hercules, where he earned a Distinguished Flying Cross and was awarded a Purple Heart, Jon attended Pilot Training and completed a second Vietnam tour flying the T-39. Also a veteran of the Cold War, Jon flew F-4 Phantoms for the remainder of his career, earning a second Distinguished Flying Cross for Heroism in 1983. After retiring from the Air Force, Jon flew the B-727 for Fedex until his second, and last, retirement in 2004. Jon and Trish relocated to The Villages, FL, in 2005 where he spent the remainder of his days playing golf, enjoying evenings at the town square, neighborhood parties, and planning visits with his six grandchildren.
Jon was a member of The Retired Officers Association, the Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association, the Saber Society, and numerous other professional organizations. He was preceded in death by his father, Col Glenn R. Alexander, USAF, Ret., his mother, Bertina Alexander, and his beloved brother Capt James E. Alexander, USAF. He is survived by wife, Trish, sons Lt Col James R. Alexander, USAF and Lt Col Steven S. Alexander, USAF, brother Lt Col Steven R. Alexander, USA, Ret., and six Grandchildren.
Viewing services will be held at the Shrine of Remembrance, Colorado Springs, CO, on Sunday, January 11th, 2015, from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM. Memorial services will be held on Monday, January 12th, at 10:00 AM at the Shrine of Remembrance. Interment will follow at the United States Air Force Academy.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests a small donation be made to the River Rats MIA/KIA Scholarship Fund, c/o Red River Valley Fighter Pilots Association, www.River-Rats.org.