Wendell Laverne Sittser went to his joyous eternal home with his Father in Heaven on April 15, 2026, at the age of 93.

He is loved and missed by his family, including his son Steven and daughter-in-law Carolyn; grandchildren Christina, Kevin, and Amy; sister Judy Pedulla, sister-in-law Marilyn DeDenko and brother-in-law Dmitri; and brother-in-law Bill Mahaffey.

Wendell was born June 18, 1932, and grew up in Galesburg, Illinois.  His mother Ruby was a beautician, and his father Harrison a baker, painter, plumber, and warehouseman, and their family grew to include his sisters Carol and Judy, and his brother Tim.  He played baseball and basketball in high school, where he was known, to his dismay, as "Socks" Sittser.  He hitchhiked around Ohio doing farm work, and worked for a while in the Goodyear tire plant.

He attended Kent State and Bradley Universities while living with his Uncle Bob and Aunt Eve Jamieson.  He joined the Coast Guard, and became a navigator on the icebreaker Storis, which maintained the Northwest Passage and supplied arctic outposts.

In 1958 he married Martha ("Marti") Mahaffey, a schoolteacher from Ohio who he met on a blind date arranged by a friend.  The Coast Guard transferred them to Kodiak, Alaska.  They loved it, and stayed there for two years, until Wendell completed his active duty with the Coast Guard.  He joined the Coast Guard Reserves, and stayed with them for another 32 years, retiring as a Captain.

After Alaska Wendell worked for General Dynamics in San Diego, where his children Susan and Steven were born.  He spent his career as a business executive at General Dynamics and its various subdivisions and spinoffs.  From San Diego the family moved to Upstate New York, where they often enjoyed camping with friends.

In 1974 their beloved Susan was lost to cancer at the age of 13.  Susan's faith in God through her ordeal inspired Wendell, Marti, and Steven to take their own relationships with God more seriously, and all three became dedicated Christians.

After moves to California, Florida, and St. Louis, Wendell finished his career in Texas as director of production for the F16 aircraft, after which he retired and returned to St. Louis, where he and Marti then lived for over 30 years.

Wendell served as an alderman for Clarkson Valley, Missouri, and was a founding elder of Emmanual Presbyterian Church in Wildwood.  Wendell and Marti enjoyed traveling, camping, and spending time with their three grandchildren, who lived nearby.  They eventually joined Clayton Community Church, where Steven and Carolyn attend.

In their eighties, Marti and eventually Wendell were struck with Alzheimer's disease.  Even through his own dementia he cared for Marti with love and tenderness until her death in 2024, and retained a sunny and cheerful outlook until Alzheimer's took him as well.  He will be remembered for his kindness, ready smile, sense of humor, integrity, and steadiness of character.

His family misses him very much, but his faith was in Jesus, and his treasures were in heaven, and we know he has begun a joyous eternal life.

Services: Wendell's memorial service will be held at Clayton Community Church, 2501 Rockford Ave, Rock Hill, MO 63144 on Saturday, May 9, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. Lunch will follow. The service will be streamed via Zoom from www.claytoncommunitychurch.com . Burial will be at Jefferson Barracks Cemetery with military honors on Monday, May 11, at 10:30 a.m.  If desired, donations in his memory may be sent to Clayton Community Church or to Samaritan's Purse (www.samaritanspurse.org).  As a service of the SCHRADER Funeral Home and Crematory, friends may sign the family's on-line guestbook at Schrader.com.