DALE D. CUMMINGS, 2LT, USMC

From USNA Virtual Memorial Hall
Dale Cummings '53

Date of birth: April 11, 1929

Date of death: April 22, 1954

Age: 25

Lucky Bag

From the 1953 Lucky Bag:

1953 Cummings LB.jpg

DALE DUANE CUMMINGS

Saginaw, Minnesota

After a three-year stint in the Marine Corps and a few weeks of propping at Bainbridge, "Bulldog" established base operations at USNA. From Navy he vectored out to give the ladies a break . . . and always returned with tales of fair damsel fairly won. Time not spent with the girls was utilized in lifting weights; Dale was a familiar sight, sweating and straining, muscles bulging, tugging at the bar bell. All brawn and no brains didn't apply in his case, however. Inherently a "goof-off," he performed a minimum amount of brain work and always managed to come up with just short of starring averages. Genuinely sincere, always pleasant. Dale was all all-round good guy.

1953 Cummings LB.jpg

DALE DUANE CUMMINGS

Saginaw, Minnesota

After a three-year stint in the Marine Corps and a few weeks of propping at Bainbridge, "Bulldog" established base operations at USNA. From Navy he vectored out to give the ladies a break . . . and always returned with tales of fair damsel fairly won. Time not spent with the girls was utilized in lifting weights; Dale was a familiar sight, sweating and straining, muscles bulging, tugging at the bar bell. All brawn and no brains didn't apply in his case, however. Inherently a "goof-off," he performed a minimum amount of brain work and always managed to come up with just short of starring averages. Genuinely sincere, always pleasant. Dale was all all-round good guy.

Loss

Dale was lost when his F9F-4 crashed near MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina, on April 22, 1954. He is buried in Florida.

From the June 1954 issue of Shipmate:

Second Lt. DALE D. CUMMINGS, USMC, was killed in an airplane crash at Pensacola, Fla., on 22 April. Funeral serves were held at NAS Pensacola on 26 April. Dale was 27 years old and a member of the 3rd Battalion at the Naval Academy. Prior to entering the Naval Academy, Dale served a three-year tour in the Marine Corps, and upon graduation returned to his mother service. To all of us who remember Dale, his genuinely sincere attitude and pleasing personality are foremost in our memories. Our entire class suffers a great loss and extends its deepest sympathy to Dale's wife, the former Beverly Stoker of Plain City, Ohio, and to his family.


Class of 1953

Dale is one of 62 members of the Class of 1953 on Virtual Memorial Hall.

QR code

The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.