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  Jerry Ashley Stead
Jerry Ashley Stead was born in 1927 in New Hampshire to Dorothy Margaret Norrell and Frank Arthur Stead. He had one brother Rexford A. Stead and in Rye his family lived at 362 Holly Lane. Jerry was a Rye High School graduate, class of 1944.
After graduating high school he enrolled for maritime basic training.
 Local Man in Maritime Training
Sheepshead Bay, N. Y. — Now in
training at the U. S. Maritime Service
Training Station is Jerry A. Stead, 17, of Loudon
Woods, Rye. Before enrolling he was
a Rye High School student.
Apprentice Seaman Stead will receive six weeks of basic training,
including lifeboat work, fire fighting,
breaches buoy, mess, sea rules and
traditions, swimming, ship construction and equipment, gunnery, and
physical training.
After completing "boot" training,
he will specialize in deck or engine
training, including three weeks of
practical experience aboard a training
ship at sea.
PAGE TWELVE THE RYE CHRONICL E Friday, July 28, 1944
_at_anchor_on_12_August_1945.jpg) At 17 years old Jerry then enlisted and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He served as a seaman first class on the USS Fall River (CA-131), his service number was 205-87-81. (See Muster Rolls).
The USS Fall River (CA-131) was a Baltimore-class heavy cruiser of the U.S. Navy, commissioned in 1945 and decommissioned just two years later in 1947. It was primarily known for its role as the control ship for the atomic bomb tests during Operation Crossroads at Bikini Atoll in 1946.
After his discharge from the service, Jerry attended St. Petersburg Junior College. He then worked for a time in the advertising department of The Daily Item, a Port Chester newspaper covering events on sound shore communities.
 In 1950, he enlisted in the US Airforce and trained as a radar technician. Jerry served in Korea with the 502nd Tactical Control Group.
The 502nd Tactical Control Group played a vital role in the Korean War (1950-1953) by directing U.S. Air Force tactical air operations, using radar and command control to guide fighter jets like the F-86 Sabre against enemy MiGs in "MiG Alley," and supporting ground troops by vectoring bombers and coordinating air support, earning multiple honors for its crucial, often frontline, work
 He retired from the United States Air Force as a Radar Technician.
Jerry Stead, 91 years of age, died at his home in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on January 27, 2018. At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife Dona Sue Stead, and their three children.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/187080136/jerr...
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