Leroy Eugene Engle was born April 17, 1931, in Hampton, Iowa. The first of three sons, including Norman and Lowell, born to Everett Engle and Verna Lee. The family led a nomadic life in northeast Iowa during those depression years moving between Hampton, Cedar Falls and Waterloo before finally settling in Tripoli during World War II.
Leroy graduated from high school in Tripoli in 1949. In those days he would have been recognized as the skinny red headed kid with a nice baritone voice, who loved to sing and wowed the judges at the state music contest with his rendition of “On The Road To Mandaly.” Singing would continue to be one of his trademarks throughout life.
He began his college career at Morningside in Sioux City but after one year he heeded the call to duty and joined the U.S. Navy, serving four years during the Korean war. It was during his first enlistment in the Navy that he met and married Joyce Thomas of West Concord, Minn., who would be his wife for 52 years. The two were to subsequently have five children, Dineen, Kevin, Patrick, Shawn and Kelly. By sadly, Joyce would die of cancer on the Fourth of July, 2005. After his first four-year stint in the Navy, Leroy returned to Tripoli where he set up a photography business. That business would not support a growing family so they moved to Waterloo where he held several different position, including car salesman and a salesman for Sears & Roebuck. Leroy struggled a few years trying to find what suited him as a profession, trying to get a college degree and provide for the family and ultimately opted to return to Navy service in 1960.
Back in the Navy he really began to find his niche, managed to obtain a bachelor’s degree followed by a master’s degree and ended his Navy career in 1974 as a Limited Duty officer. His assignments in the Navy included San Diego, Honolulu, Japan, Whidbey Island, Alaska, Antarctica as well as stints on the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Wasp. His Navy career was focused around aviation electronics which proved to be the stepping stone to his second career. It was during one of his assignments at Whidbey Island that they bought the property which would become known on the island as, “The Rock and Apple Ranch.”
When he retired from the Navy in 1974, the family — no one excluded, built their house on that property. It was during this period of his life that Leroy truly became a man for all seasons. He alternately built houses, taught school, dabbled in local politics, emulated “Yosemite Sam” by growing a handlebar mustache and started an apple orchard. He also started his real second career at Boeing Aircraft where he fell back on his avionics training from the Navy, tying that to his teaching credentials to teach aviation electronics to all customers of Boeing Aircraft. That job allowed him and Joyce to make several trips overseas to places such as Australia and New Zealand and Leroy traveled alone to Ethiopia and Egypt. Ask the family about his King Tut beans!
While working at Boeing Leroy decided to create an apple orchard on their property. With help from Joyce and the kids still within driving distance of Whidbey Island he began buying root stock and grafting apple trees. He would eventually end up with approximately 1,200 trees which included about 55 different varieties. Some of you have sampled the apple cider and apple butter that were products of this orchard. The special blend of apples which he and Joyce selected for those items produced a products whose reputation remains in Whidbey Island and has some people calling for the Rock and Apple Ranch to be listed on the historic register for the island.
After ten years of working with Boeing, Leroy retired for the second time in an attempt to spend more time fishing for salmon in the great Northwest. This became one of his primary sources of joy during the last ten years of his life, and in July of 2005 his last salmon trip was to the Kenai River in Alaska. Even though he was retired from Boeing the apple orchard continued to call.
Following the untimely, tragic loss of Joyce after a prolonged battle with cancer on July 4, 2005, Leroy began contemplating starting over. He moved his mom back to the Midwest in October and during that trip looked up old friends in Clarksville. After a few days in that area he decided it would be a place to make a new beginning. He agreed to buy a small house there beside some long time friends. He returned to Washington State and started making preparations for that new beginning. With the Rock and Apple Ranch on the market he headed back to Iowa.
The Monday before Thanksgiving Leroy arrived in Harpers Ferry, Iowa and had a stroke as he was approaching the gate of his brother Lowell’s property. During the next few weeks he was evaluated, started therapy and was advised that his best next step would be to have surgery to remove a plaque buildup in the left carotid artery. He was advised that the procedure was risky but decided that in order to have the quality of life he wanted, that risk was worth taking. On Dec. 14 the operation took place in St. Francis Hospital, Lacrosse, Wis. The worst case scenario ensued and Leroy suffered a massive stroke. Life support was removed on Dec. 26, 2005 and he passed away that same day.
Leroy is survived by his mother, Verna Engle of Waukon, Iowa; brother Lowell of Harpers Ferry; his five children Dineen, Kevin, Patrick, Shawn and Kelly who are scattered around the country. He also his six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Leroy will be buried with full military honors in Arlington National Cemetery on Feb. 22 at 3 p.m.
