Obituary of Ivan Battern

Ivan L. Battern, born April 17, 1925, died at home on Sunday, December 4, 2011. He was the husband of Andrea J. (Cerar) Battern. Ivan grew up in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. At the age of 16 he entered the Marine Corps and served during WWII in Samoa, Wallis Island, Abermama and Tarawa. After the war he attended the Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa, OK. After graduation, he dusted crops in Oklahoma and Texas. He was hired as a pilot by Pan American World Airlines. Due to the airlines realignments, he flew for various airlines including Eastern Airlines, Trans Ocean and USOA. In 1955, he was hired by Seaboard World Airlines, a scheduled air cargo carrier, as a Relief Captain. In 1980, Seaboard merged with The Flying Tiger Line. He retired as a captain of the B747 in 1984. His airline career had taken him around the world. In 1971, he purchased what was the unused Barrett Airport in Canadensis, restored it, and renamed the airport the Flying Dollar Airport. At the Flying Dollar, Captain Battern restored many airplanes and was known in the area by both locals and tourists for his aerobatic rides. In addition to his wife, Andrea, he is survived by two sons, Michael F. Battern and Ivan Battern, Jr. ; three daughters, Jessica Battern McCormick, Billi Jean Perry and Pamela Evans; six grandchildren; and three great-grandchldren. He was preceded in death by his former wife, Nola E. Federlien Battern, a granddaughter, Angie and a great granddaughter, Samantha. There will be a visitation on Wednesday, December 7 at 10:00 a.m. at the Bolock Funeral Home, 6148 Paradise Valley Road in Cresco. The Reverend Father Joseph Kopacz will conduct a Memorial Service at 11:00 a.m. Private cremation was entrusted to the Bolock Funeral Home Crematory. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the VNA Hospice of Monroe County, 502 Independence Road, East Stroudsburg, PA 18301