The world has lost a courageous, honorable, gentle and loving man. His wife, Alice, has lost her soulmate and best friend. On Oct.14, 2022, Roger Mats Stadin passed away at Thomasville Archbold Hospital from complications of influenza and pneumonia. His extraordinary life began in Sundsvall, Sweden, on July 29, 1939. In 1949, his father Nils, mother Aina, sister Eva and Roger emigrated from Sweden to Clarksburg, W. Va. After a year, they moved to Minneapolis, Minn. Roger attended the University of Minnesota and worked for Honeywell. During this time, he was drafted into the Army, trained as a radio operator, sent to Jump School, and then graduated to the 7th Special Forces Unit known as the Green Berets, training for overseas missions.
After his army life, Roger worked with Honeywell military division for 25 years. This included calibrating the Apache helicopter helmets to work with the choppers, as well as traveling most of America and some of Germany as Field Engineer. He joined Lockheed Missile and Space Company (now known as Lockheed Martin) where he worked for the next 18 years as an aerospace engineer. His career for Lockheed included living with his wife, Alice, on Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands, in the South Pacific. This involved working on the Star Wars Missile Program during the Reagan era. Then Roger and Alice lived in Las Cruces, N.M., for three years while he worked at White Sands Missile Range. They retired and lived in St. Petersburg, Fla., until moving to Monticello in 2002.
In retirement Roger enjoyed country life, volunteering for various local organizations, including the Jefferson Arts Gallery, the Monticello Chamber of Commerce, the 1st United Methodist Church (FUMC) and Wolf Creek Humane Society. He was prized for his skills in the community and really loved finding fix-it projects for people in need.
Left to cherish his memory are his wife, Alice; stepson, Mark Greenhill (Becky); granddaughters, Leah Sawyer (Eric), Alison Greenhill; two nieces, Jeannine Schreiber (Rick), and Valerie Lancello (Pierre); nephew, Rich Lancello (Sara); and many more family members and life-long friends located in Minnesota, Kentucky, Florida and Sweden. Roger was preceded in death by his parents, Nils and Aina Stadin; his stepson, Michael Greenhill; and sister, Eva Lancello.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Wolf Creek Animal Shelter, SnappHappy Cat Sanctuary, FUMC Monticello, or a charity of your choosing. Ceremonies will be held at Tallahassee National Cemetery on Oct. 28, 2022, at 10 a.m., with a reception to follow at FUMC Family Ministry Ctr. in Monticello, Fla.
