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Edgar A. Stalder Baton Rouge, LA QCWA # 31667 |
Edgar A. Stalder of Baton Rouge passed away on December 13, 2015 (his 92nd birthday). His daughter Susan was at his side as he passed quietly of natural causes. Mr. Stalder was the son of Edgar F. and Bertha S. (Schneider) Stalder. He grew up a farm boy along the Kansas-Nebraska state line on a farm in Nebraska near Sabetha, Kansas. Mr. Stalder was a proud veteran of the U.S. Army in World War II. He served in an Intelligence and Reconnaissance platoon in the 5th Infantry Division, spearheading Gen. George Patton's Third Army across France and Germany. He was awarded a Silver Star for heroism in France when his vehicle, the only one in a forward recon team in sight of a German position, was pinned down in a ditch by enemy mortars. Mr. Stalder crawled back to the Jeep, mounted the machine gun and destroyed two German mortars, an enemy machine gun and nearly a squad of enemy infantry. When his ammunition ran out, he picked up the wounded and returned to the rear. As the first soldier back from the engagement, he delivered vital information about the location of the Germans and asked for more ammo to return to the fight. In 1996, he wrote an extensive memoir about his time in the Army, for which he received a letter of praise from historian Stephen E. Ambrose, who included it in the collections at the Eisenhower Center at the University of New Orleans and at the National World War II Museum. After his discharge from the Army following the war, Mr. Stalder married Mildred A. Strahm of Sabetha on Jan. 18, 1946. They had four children together. He later married Virginia Burton. Mr. Stalder received his undergraduate degree from Nebraska Wesleyan and his Master's from the University of Nebraska. He began his working life as a schoolteacher in Nebraska and moved to Kansas City to work as a computer programmer and systems analyst for the U.S. Department of Agriculture when it began computerizing all its records in the late 1950s. He rose to the directorship of the New Orleans data processing office and finished his career on the staff at USDA headquarters in Washington, D.C. After retiring, Mr. Stalder moved to Abingdon, VA, and subsequently took up residence at St. James Place in Baton Rouge, where he was an active resident and developed a large circle of beloved friends. An ardent sports fan, Mr. Stalder loved rooting for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and his adopted LSU Tigers. He cheered for the Kansas City Chiefs. He was able to go to Super Bowl IV in New Orleans and watch them beat the Minnesota Vikings. He was also a New Orleans Saints fan. His move from Kansas City to the New Orleans USDA office in 1967 coincided with the founding of the Saints. Mr. Stalder also loved keeping a beautiful landscape. Many Saturday mornings were spent with his family at local gardening centers selecting plants for the yard.
Mr. Stalder is survived by his younger brother Charles "Pete" Stalder of Lincoln, NE. He also leaves behind his son Robert and his wife Pattie of Westmoreland, KS; son Richard and his wife Pam of Zachary, LA; son Ronald of Austin, TX; daughter Susan Brinker and her husband Brian of Stillwater, OK; 10 grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren and one great-great-granddaughter.
In lieu of flowers the family suggests that memorials be made to St. James Place Foundation, 333 Lee Drive, Baton Rouge, LA 70808. A private commital service will be held for the family at Port Hudson National Cemetery.