Stacy Dexter Byrd, age 84, died peacefully in Santa Barbara on October 6, 2016 surrounded by family. He was born in Bunnlevel, North Carolina and raised in Coats, N.C. where he excelled in sports, and grew up with a love of hunting and fishing. He entered the Air Force after high school during the Korean War, which brought him to Washington DC. Working on the flight deck, his carpentry skills were noted by the Colonel. While remodeling the Colonel's office, he met a red-headed blue-eyed Irish lass, Charlotte O'Brien, whom he married, and built a beautiful life together.
Stacy was career Air Force with the Strategic Air Command, starting with planes and ending with missiles. After many transfers, the Byrd Family settled in the Vandenberg AFB area, where the last of his six children was born. After retiring from the Air Force, Stacy continued missile work as a quality control engineer with Boeing and Martin Marietta and was recognized for his many contributions to successful missile launches.
Family was important to Stacy. When in Washington DC, there were many trips down to North Carolina. Even after the move to California, there were still many cross-country trips to NC in the family station wagon, filling his children with a lifetime of stories. Stacy built their first home in Maryland at the age of 24. He continued over the years as a one-man construction crew, remodeling the homes of all of his children. Stacy and Charlottes' last house, "Byrd's Paradise," was on five acres outside of Lompoc -it had lush gardens and bountiful fruit trees. They hosted many gatherings of friends and family including tractor rides with his grandchildren. Well into his 70's, Stacy was still hunting, fishing, gardening or up on the roof, fixing what needed to be fixed.
Stacy is preceded in death by his parents, Maylon and Ellie Byrd, his sister Gertrude Byrd and his wife Charlotte. He is survived and missed by his six children (and spouses): Tess (Ron), Sharon (Mark), Bob (Christine), Mike (Liz), Mary (Dan), and Steve (Michele); and his 11 grandchildren: Noah, Kelsey, David, Seth, Natalie, Marcus, Johnny, Andrew, Nico, Mackenzie, and Serena. Stacy's family is appreciative of the great care provided by Heritage House during his last several years.
Services will be held at Lompoc Evergreen Cemetery on Monday, October 17, 2016 at 10:30 am. Following the service, a reception will be held at Melville Winery.