Obituary of Merle Pavletic

Merle Rudolph Pavletic, 92, passed away June 13, 2015, at his longtime home in Libertyville, IL. He was born June 3, 1923, to Rudolph and Minnie Pavletic and spent his childhood in Waukegan, IL. At the age of 17 he followed his fascination with airplanes and enlisted in the Navy as a flight engineer. After serving in numerous battles in the European Theatre, he then survived being shot down in the English Channel on D-Day and was awarded a Purple Heart. After a six-month recovery he returned to the air, serving in the Pacific Theatre until the end of the war. Upon returning home from WWII, he married his longtime love Geraldine. The two have been married nearly 70 years. The two met when Merle was just 12-years-old, delivering newspapers to her house. He quickly made her house the very last on his route to spend extra time with her and to play checkers with her mom. Her mother gave him fifty cents to take her on their very first date. In 1947, Merle entered into the insurance business as a life insurance salesman. He continued on in insurance, building a successful business that has now passed along to another generation of the Pavletic family. Even after the war, Merle’s passion still remained flying. He re-enlisted in the military in 1953 and spent the next several decades flying jet aircraft on a weekly basis, including the F-4 Phantom, the F-14 Tomcat, and the F-15 Eagle. But even that was not enough flying time for him, so he purchased a Piper Comanche and took to the skies anytime he wanted. Merle is the father of three cherished sons that he never missed an opportunity to tell everyone about. His oldest is Frank, a successful businessman, next is Michael, a world-renowned veterinary surgeon, and then Jeffrey, an accomplished and well-known prosecutor in Lake County. Merle was preceded in death by his parents, Rudolph and Minnie, his brother Rudy, and his sister Vela. He is survived and loved by his wife Geraldine, his sons Frank, Michael and Jeffrey, his daughter’s-in-law Adria and Eileen, his five grandchildren Tyler, John, Thomas, Afton, and Maylin, his granddaughter-in-law Courtney, and his great-granddaughter Katherine. Visitation will be held at the McMurrough Funeral Chapel, 101 Park Place (Rt 176, 1 Block East of Milwaukee Ave) Libertyville on Friday, June 19, from 4 until 8 pm. A funeral mass will be celebrated at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 121 E Maple Ave, Libertyville on Saturday, June 20th at 10 am. Burial will follow at Ascension Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, Kansas 66675. Funeral information (847) 362-2626. Please sign the guestbook at libertyvillefuneralhome.com