Lt. Col. Richard L Buesinger, Sr.

Lt. Col. Richard L. Buesinger, Sr. (USAF Ret), age 78, passed away Monday morning, November 9, 2015, in Destin Florida.  He was a great man and a great father,  always there for his family and friends. His life spanned four great careers. The first one was his four years at the University of Illinois and association with his fraternity and his German Shepherd, Ace, who followed him to class. Dad's stories about his time in college seemed like a lifetime in itself.  Next he was a pilot in the Air Force for 23 years as he served all over and flew many different planes and missions. His plane shot up in Vietnam while taking relief and rescue to many.  He also served as the chief briefer to the CINCPAC (US Pacific Command) at the height of the Cold War working under Presidents from Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan.  Next he transitioned towards ministry, pioneering a church in Niceville, Florida which he passed to Pastor Roddy Shaffer six years ago. It remains a thriving church and bible school today.  He then transitioned to what might have been his favorite career, conducting Beach Weddings from Seaside to Navarre Beach.  If you had any conversations with him in the last six or seven years you know the Beach Weddings were his love and passion.  He deeply loved being able to bring God in a special way to those weddings. His drive and passion to be excellent in everything he did was well demonstrated in every one of those weddings.  His wife of 56 years, Darlene, has resided in a nursing home the last six years due to Alzheimer's Disease, but even through a time of health struggles of his own, he took care of her on a daily basis.

Richard is survived by his wife, Darlene; sons, Richard L. Buesinger, Jr. (wife, Heather) and their children, Kirsten and Kaitlin, and David Buesinger (wife, Audrey) and their children Emmalee, David and Stephen; a daughter, Denise Buesinger Brown (husband, Jerry) and their children, David, Audrey and Heather;  four great grandchildren, Ashton, Parker, Hailey and Ava; and a brother, Ronald Buesinger (wife, Jean).

A time of visitation will be held from 5-7 PM on Wednesday, November 11, 2015, at Whitehurst Powell Funeral Home in Crestview.  A Celebration of Richard’s life will take place at 10 AM Thursday at Living Faith Christian Center in Niceville.  Burial with military honors will follow at 1:15 PM at Barrancas National Cemetery, Pensacola, FL. "In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be directed to the building fund or outreach programs at www.easytithe.com/livingfaith in support of this worship center that Richard founded."

Arrangements are entrusted to Whitehurst Powell Funeral Home in Crestview.  Guest book and condolences are available online at www.whitehurstpowellfuneralhome.com

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