Dr. Merle Eugene Stilwell, 90 of Indiana, passed away on Sunday, June 11, 2023, at

St. Andrew's Village, Indiana, PA.

Born in 1932 in Mansfield, PA to Albert and Gladys Mudge Stilwell, he graduated

from Mansfield High School in 1950, where he was a three-year letter winner in

basketball and baseball. Offered a contract to play baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers

organization, Merle opted instead to serve in the military. As an activated

Pennsylvania National Guardsman, he served two years in the Medical Corps in

Germany during the Korean Conflict, ultimately achieving the rank of Sergeant First

Class.

He attended Mansfield State Teachers College from 1952 to 1956, lettering in baseball

and football in each of four seasons and served as the Student Government president

in 1955 and 1956. During his senior year he served as captain of the baseball team,

was named the school's scholar-athlete, received the Kappa Delta Pi Senior Award for

highest scholastic honors, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in

Mathematics, English, and History.

Mansfield was also where he met his wife Eleanor Seely Stilwell. They married in

1955 and moved to Huntington Station, Long Island, NY the following year. Merle

began his professional career as a mathematics teacher at Walt Whitman High School

in the South Huntington school district where he taught until 1965. During this period,

he coached nine years of football and three years of baseball as well as earned his

Master of Arts in Teaching degree in 1958 from Columbia University in New York

City.

Merle and Eleanor moved to Ithaca, NY in 1965, where he earned a PhD from Cornell

University in both Mathematics and Education. In 1967 they moved to Indiana, PA,

where he served as a mathematics professor for 23 years at Indiana University of

Pennsylvania and also supervised student teachers. He remained active in athletics

while at IUP, serving as a football coach from 1977 to 1983 and as an academic

advisor to football players until his retirement.

In addition, Merle served as a head coach for Junior Legion baseball teams from 1974

to 1980, twice leading the Indiana Lions to the state playoffs. He was an active

member of Grace United Methodist Church, where he served on several teams and

committees and with Eleanor sang in the Chancel Choir for over 50 years. He also

served as the tenor for the Sprucemen Barbershop Quartet, entertaining countless

audiences in and around Indiana County. He served as chairman of the Indiana

County Red Cross Mass Care Program for 12 years and was a member of both the

Indiana Lions Club and Indiana's Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1989. He worked

tirelessly at the VFW Golf Course as well as on the conception and building of Grace

Manor in Indiana.

Merle was a 1986 inductee into the Tioga County, PA Sports Hall of Fame and a 2014

Special Honoree of the Indiana County Sports Hall of Fame. His hobbies included

golfing, woodworking, watching the Steelers and Pirates, and providing selfless

service to others. He had a litany of jokes that kept all in earshot in stitches. He also

enjoyed the many dogs who were his and Eleanor's faithful companions.

His children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and friends across the country

brought him great joy. In turn, the joy he brought to them will carry on forever.

Merle is survived by his son, Colonel Douglas Stilwell, USMC (Retired) and wife

Deborah of Oakmont, PA; his daughter, Wendy Stilwell Boehme and husband Les of

Murfreesboro, TN; three grandchildren, Heather Stilwell, Brian Stilwell and wife

Brianna, and Emily Stilwell Hays and husband Ryan, all of Pittsburgh; and three

greatgrandchildren, Haley Stilwell, Henry Hays, and Claire Stilwell. He is also

survived by two brothers, Arthur Stilwell of Painted Post, NY and Donald Stilwell of

Millerton, PA, as well as sister Ninita Jones of Millerton, PA.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by sisters Lois Wilcox and Clarice

Evans, as well as his wife Eleanor.

Friends and family will be received on Thursday, June 29, 2023, from 6-8 PM at the

Bowser-Minich Funeral Home, Indiana. A Celebration of Life Service will be held on

Friday, June 30, 2023, at 11 AM in Grace Church, 712 Church Street, Indiana, with

Pastor Bill Blair and Kathy Mihoerck officiating. Interment will be private.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Traditional Music Fund, Grace Church,

712 Church St., Indiana, PA 15701.

To send an online condolence to the family, please visit www.bowserminich.com.