The Shadow
COVINGTON, Va. (VR) – Retired Air Force Master Sergeant, Bobby Dean Rogers, age 90, was laid to rest on Jan. 20 with a six-man honor guard from Andrews Air Force Base. It was a moving tribute to this very special 22-year veteran. Rogers left a legacy of not only his service to his country but his daughters’ service to their country. Rogers served our country as an air traffic controller living in Texas, New Mexico, France, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Korea and Vietnam during the war. He was a long-time member of the Experimental Aircraft Association.
Bobby’s favorite passion in life was building and flying biplanes. His daughter Patty remembers him taking her and her sisters, Teresa and Susie, flying. One of his favorite things to do was taking them flying and putting the plane into a stall making it feel like a rollercoaster going down. The girls would scream, and he would laugh and pull it back out of stall and do it all over again.
Bobby never knew a stranger and was always there to help. He was a weather fanatic and always knew the weather by watching the radar. He spent many years as part owner of the B&B Rogers Logging Company alongside his wife of 69 years, Betty.
Daughter Susan G. Rogers served 24 years as a Ground Radio Technician. She served two separate tours overseas, Sembach, Germany and Izmir, Turkey and was stationed in Arizona and Texas and served short stints in Japan, Crete and Italy.
Daughter Patricia R. Helmick served 26 years and three consecutive tours overseas: RAF Chicksands and RAF Upwood in England and NATO AB Geilenkirchen in Germany. She met her husband, Wayne (who is from Morgantown, West Virginia), and served 20 years, while they were both stationed in Geilenkirchen. Patricia was stationed in Florida, North and South Dakota and Illinois.
Bobby Rogers and his two daughters retired as Master Sergeants from the Air United States Air Force. Thank you, Rogers family, for your many years of service to America.
L-R: Susan Rogers, Bobby Rogers and Patricia Rogers Helmick (Photo courtesy Rogers family)
Andrews Air Force Base six-man honor guard (Marian Paxton photo)
