news@santaynezvalleystar.com

The secret to a long and happy marriage for Creighton “Jim” Axtell and Phyllis Axtell is having respect for one another and having a good attitude, even in tough times.

The Axtells on their wedding day almost 75 years ago.
Photo contributed

The Solvang couple, who will celebrate 75 years of marriage in May, took some time to talk about their relationship and how they help one another.

Along with celebrating a milestone in their marriage, Jim is also turning 98 this year. As they sat at their kitchen table on a rainy morning, they helped one another communicate, as Phyllis’ eyesight isn’t as sharp as it used to be and Jim has a hard time hearing.

“We make the perfect person because I help her see things and she yells in my ear,” Jim laughed. “She always has a great disposition and we have always got along very well, even when times were hard.”

Phyllis pulled out two books and laid them on the table. Each was an autobiography of their lives and memories, including childhood photos and memories of what life was like in World War II.

Jim was born in Missouri, where his father was a telegraph operator for Western Union and his mother was a clerk.

“During those times everyone would gather around their radio sets and listen to FDR’s (President Franklin Delano Roosevelt) fireside speeches. The change in technology since I was a child has amazed me,” Jim said.

When Jim graduated from high school he moved to Los Angeles to get involved in the war effort. He enlisted in the Air Force and then worked at Lockheed assembling parts. He spent more than 30 years there, eventually retiring as a manager.

Phyllis grew up in North Dakota as a farmer’s daughter and also moved to Los Angeles to join the war effort.

“Creighton (as she calls her husband) and I met through a friend and we just knew we wanted to spend time together. We would take day trips together, often to Mount Wilson (a peak in the San Gabriel Mountains). We just love traveling together,” she said as she grabbed her husband’s hand.

Phyllis got a job in the stock room at Lockheed and they married on May 26, 1943. The couple decided to go back to school so they spent their nights in classes, eventually earning master’s degrees.

“Phyllis is the smart one of us. I am the muscle,” Jim laughed as he flexed his arm.

She rolled her eyes and laughed.

When Jim was offered a position at Lockheed with top-secret responsibilities, he was asked if he wanted a good-paying job even though he couldn’t know what the job was until after he accepted. He said sure.

“I was taken to an isolated building each day and I couldn’t tell anyone, not even Phyllis, what we were doing,” he said.

He was part of a team developing jets that ended up producing the XP-80. The code name for the project was called “Skunk Works,” after a reference in the newspaper cartoon “Lil Abner.”

The XP-80 flew before the end of World War II, but it wasn’t used in combat until later.

Creighton “Jim” Axtell while he served in the Air Force during World War II.
Photo contributed

“While I was in the Air Force we ended up as the first squadron that went to Hiroshima after they dropped the bomb. I can tell you, that is something I will never forget, just the utter destruction for as far as the eye could see. It was heartbreaking,” he said.

While at the company the couple and several others moved to a newly constructed neighborhood and they all decided to build their own houses on empty lots there.

“We all helped one another build our houses. Phyllis was up on the roof shingling it while I was inside working on the electrical stuff. Being married is a lot like building a house in that things don’t always go right, but you work it out together and get it done,” Jim said.

In 1959 the Axtells moved to Solvang when Jim accepted a position with Lockheed at Vandenberg Air Force Base. Phyllis decided to use her degree in education and became the principal at Ballard Elementary School for a few years. Then she went back to Lockheed as a technical editor for another 11 years before retiring in 1987.

In retirement they have literally traveled the world, exploring Europe several times and enjoying an African safari. They also loved being part of local hiking groups and volunteering.

“The Axtells are such great neighbors, and they are the epitome of the Greatest Generation. They are lovely people,” said neighbor Chris Elmerick.

Since they can’t get around very well now, they enjoy meals brought to them each day by Atterdag Village of Solvang’s Meals on Wheels program.

“Seeing our family and beautiful grandchildren are always a delight. We know we have led a great life together. It’s not perfect, but I think as close as you can get,” Jim said as his lunch was arriving.

The post Couple married for almost 75 years recall a lifetime of love appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

Star Staff Report

People around the Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Barbara County can feel the rumbling of the ground and shaking of windows or see the rockets blasting off from Vandenberg Air Force Base, which is a special event in of itself. This Wednesday’s rocket launch will be all that more special as it is a tribute to fallen firefighter Ryan Osler of Ventura County Fire Department.

Osler, 38, died Sept. 21 when the water tender he was riding in tipped over while making its way to the Canyon Fire on Highway 246 at Purisima Road east of Lompoc.

“We were invited to Vandenberg for a private tour of the launching pad and the rocket that will be launched on March 1 memorializing my husband. I was immediately moved to tears when I saw Vandenberg firefighters lined up awaiting our arrival. Again, tears came quickly when I saw my husband’s name placed on the larger than life rocket,” wrote his wife Jennifer Osler on her social media account.

Team Vandenberg is scheduled to launch a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying a National Reconnaissance Office payload from Space Launch Complex-3 on Wednesday, March 1, with a launch window opening at 9:49 a.m.

“These launches require constant communication with a widespread team, especially with the unique challenges we faced during this mission,” said Lt. Col. Eric Zarybnisky, 4th Space Launch Squadron commander and Air Force Launch Director for this mission. “With the wildfires and recent rains, the Air Force team worked closely with the United Launch Alliance to ensure a successful and safe launch.”

The Osler family was invited by United Launch Alliance (ULA) which is a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and the Boeing Company for provide cost efficient access to space for U.S. government missions, according their website.

Photos of the launch pad tour were taken by Nikkole Haddock, wife of a Vandenberg Firefighter, and quickly went viral on Facebook as the event was extremely touching, and photos of the launch pad are rare to see.

“It was such a special event and as a firefighter wife we are family, even though we had never met before. I feel really blessed I got to be apart of this special event,” Haddock said.

The Osler family was given a patch by ULA which each word, line, and design is symbolic. And the single star in the sky is representative of Osler.

“We were told that he is the first to be memorialized who wasn’t a member of their industry,” his wife wrote.

“Words can’t capture the overwhelming emotion in my heart. To know that my husband has been honored, loved, and respected by so many who never met him but see him as hero, the same as we do, is indescribable,” she added.

The post Vandenberg’s rocket launch Wednesday is a special tribute appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

Team Vandenberg is scheduled to launch the WorldView-4 satellite on an Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex-3 on Friday, Nov. 11, with a launch window opening at 10:30 a.m. PDT.

The rocket, a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 provided by Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services, has a four meter fairing to safely hold the satellite as it accelerates to 17,000 miles per hour during launch. The 30th Space Wing at Vandenberg Air Force Base is responsible for range safety and launch operations. Col. Chris Moss, 30th Space Wing commander, will be the launch decision authority.

“Team V is thrilled to be launching again following the devastating wildfires we experienced in September. We are excited to launch the Atlas V WorldView-4 mission from Vandenberg’s Western Range and are looking forward to a safe and successful mission,” said Moss.

WorldView-4 is the latest in a series of imaging and data satellites built by Lockheed Martin for customers around the world. The satellite is outfitted with cutting-edge star trackers that enable extremely precise pointing for its imaging system, which is so advanced it can discern the make of a car from its orbit in space.

The local community can view this launch from the Hawk’s Nest on Highway 1 just a half mile south of Vandenberg Air Force Base’s main gate.

The post Vandenberg prepares for Atlas V launch planned on Friday appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.