DERALD R. BEAL, LTJG, USN
Derald Beal '54
Lucky Bag
From the 1954 Lucky Bag:
Derald Ray Beal
Wichita, Kansas
Referred to as the snorkel by many of his classmates, Derald came to Usnay from the Jayhawker state with a blue and gold heart and a great desire to wear Navy wings of gold. His many passions include music, soccer, swimming, and women, and his battle cry of "Let's throw a party!" is a familiar sound to many. He managed to keep ahead of the academic departments with little effort. When not planning the next leave or liberty, he helped to keep WRNV on the air. Derald could usually be found on the soccer field, in the natatorium, or in the rack. He is rarely caught without the dope on something, can talk his way in and out of anything, and lives mainly for good times, good food, and flying.
STEEPLECHASE—4.3.2.1. SOCCER—4,3,2,1. FOREIGN LANGUAGES CLUB—4,3. RADIO AND ELECTRONICS CLUB—4,3,2,1. ENGINEERING CLUB—2,1. SOUND UNIT WRNV—4.3,2,1. VARSITY: SOCCER—4.
Derald was a member of 3rd Company staff for the winter set.
Derald Ray Beal
Wichita, Kansas
Referred to as the snorkel by many of his classmates, Derald came to Usnay from the Jayhawker state with a blue and gold heart and a great desire to wear Navy wings of gold. His many passions include music, soccer, swimming, and women, and his battle cry of "Let's throw a party!" is a familiar sound to many. He managed to keep ahead of the academic departments with little effort. When not planning the next leave or liberty, he helped to keep WRNV on the air. Derald could usually be found on the soccer field, in the natatorium, or in the rack. He is rarely caught without the dope on something, can talk his way in and out of anything, and lives mainly for good times, good food, and flying.
STEEPLECHASE—4.3.2.1. SOCCER—4,3,2,1. FOREIGN LANGUAGES CLUB—4,3. RADIO AND ELECTRONICS CLUB—4,3,2,1. ENGINEERING CLUB—2,1. SOUND UNIT WRNV—4.3,2,1. VARSITY: SOCCER—4.
Derald was a member of 3rd Company staff for the winter set.
Loss
Derald was lost when his AD-6 Skyraider crashed on April 30, 1958. (Information from Class of 1954 via email on June 8, 2017.) He is buried in California.
Other Information
From the July 1958 issue of Shipmate:
He was a pilot in Attack Squadron 126 at the time and was formerly with Air Anti-Submarine Squadron 38. Lieutenant Beal was a native of Kansas. As a midshipman, his main extra-curricular interest for four years was in keeping WRNV, the Naval Academy television station, on the air. He was a member of the Alumni Association since graduation.
He is survived by his widow, Mrs. Lois Lillian Beal.
He was the third member of the class to earn his Wings of Gold as a naval aviator.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.
