Posted on 07/31/2019
Commander Dan Richard Nolen, U.S.N. (Retired), 95, passed away peacefully on July 10, 2019, in Ashland, Alabama. Cdr. Nolen was born in Ashland, Alabama on February 3, 1924, the third of six sons born to Judge Wilbur Bernard Nolen and Kathleen Moody Nolen. He attended Clay County public schools and graduated from Marion Military Institute in Marion, Alabama. Thereafter, he received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, where he graduated in the class of 1948-B. He then attended Navy Flight School in Pensacola, Florida and became a naval aviator and career naval officer. Cdr. Nolen's military service career highlights included approximately one thousand aircraft carrier landings, nearly half of which were night missions. He served his country with distinction and valor in the Vietnam War, flying combat missions while stationed aboard the aircraft carrier, U.S.S. Intrepid, on which he was also Chief Weapons Officer. Additionally, he served in vital operations with the U.S. Navy Atlantic Fleet Commander-In-Chief, where he was Chief of Staff under the command of four different U.S. Navy Admirals. Following his military career, he returned to his native Ashland, Alabama where he served as Executive Vice President of Tri-County Telephone Company, an independent telephone service provider for three Alabama counties. He was also a lifetime member of the First United Methodist Church of Ashland, where, for decades, he was a Sunday School teacher, advisor and supporter. Cdr. Nolen was preceded in death by his five brothers: Wilbur B. Nolen, Jr. (Louise); Deforest M. Nolen (Julia); Jack M. Nolen (Bennie); Charles W. Nolen (Louise); and Jean W. Nolen (Gail). He was formerly married to the late Lenora Dempsey Mathews, and they were the parents of four sons, all of whom survived him: Dan R. Nolen, Jr. (Joan), Atlanta; Wilbur B. Nolen, II (Shirley), Anniston, Alabama; Richard M. Nolen, Sr. (Alice), Atlanta; and Nelson P. Nolen (Caroline), Atlanta. He is also survived by five grandchildren: Dan R. Nolen, III; Margaret Nolen Palori (Michael); Nicholas T. Nolen; Richard M. Nolen, Jr.; and Elizabeth A. Nolen; as well as two great grandchildren: Dan R. Nolen, IV, and Milo V. Palori. Cdr. Nolen loved his God; he loved his family; he loved his friends; he loved his life; and he loved his country. He had life-long close friends from all walks of life; he never met a stranger, and he treated everyone he knew or met with dignity, respect, humor and positive goodwill. In giving him perhaps the most fitting tribute possible, his Naval Academy classmates assessed his character and described his "joie de vivre" and his positive outlook on life as only those who had experienced his infectious personality could, when they wrote, "He was able to keep up everyone else's spirits by his own contagious cheerfulness. Laugh and the world laughs with you." The entire Nolen family wishes to express their deepest gratitude to the physicians, nurses and staff of the Clay County Nursing Home, as well as all of his other private care providers, for their sincere, steadfast, devoted and loving care of Cdr. Nolen. A memorial service will be held at the First United Methodist Church of Ashland, Alabama on Friday, August 9, at 2:00 p.m., Central Time (not Eastern Time). The family would also like to ask that, in lieu of flowers, memorials in his name be made to: First United Methodist Church Of Ashland, 83192 Hwy 9, P.O. Box 305, Ashland, Alabama 36251, Tel: 256-354-2267, Email: ashlandfumc@gmail.com
Published in The Anniston Star on July 31, 2019