Col. Ron Catton (Ret.)
Curt Zimmerman
Col. Ron Catton (Ret.) will be the guest speaker at the next meeting of the Men’s Christian Fellowship of PebbleCreek (MCFPC) on Wednesday, Nov. 1. The MCFPC meets the first Wednesday of each month through April and features guest speakers on a variety of timely topics. Meetings begin at 7:30 a.m. with complimentary coffee in the Tuscany Falls Chianti Room. Catton’s talk is entitled, “I Probably Should Be Dead.”
This month’s special guest flew over 100 combat missions over North Vietnam, mostly in some leadership capacity. His awards include the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, and the Air Medal with 10 Oak Leaf Clusters. Ron will also describe his three seasons with the Thunderbirds where he flew over 250 official airshows.
The Waukegan, Ill., native attended Carroll College, Waukesha, Wis., where he received a track scholarship.
As a student in the Fighter Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, he was the first of only two students to complete all academic subjects with a 100% score. He later returned to the school as an instructor. A few of the units in Ron’s aviation career include: Spence Field, Ga.; Luke, Goodyear, Ariz.; Clovis, N.M.; Elgin Fla.; Ubon, Thailand, and Squadron Commander at Randolph, Texas.
Following his retirement in 1973, he founded Catton Financial Services specializing in pre-retirement and post-retirement counseling. Ron lost his first wife to cancer in 1977 and recently celebrated 39 years with his second wife, Donnie. Their daughter Kennedy Ann has three daughters and a son is expected soon. His two sons have another seven grandchildren and his words, “Holidays are lots of fun at Ron’s house. I have had two storybook careers, but am most thankful for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” says Catton.
The Tuscany Falls Chianti Room is located between the Ballroom and the library. All men of PebbleCreek are welcome and invited to attend. For more information, contact President Igor Shpudejko at [email protected] or 602-384-6496.
In addition to monthly meetings the MCFPC features outreach activities including traveling to St. Mary’s Food Bank in Surprise. For more information, contact Jim Sykes at 614-395-4907. Weekly bible studies are also held each Tuesday morning, and more information can be obtained from Neil Smith at [email protected].