Edgar Dale Hutson, 92, of Huntsville, died peacefully on Friday, January 10, 2025. He was a man who loved life and always looked forward to the next adventure.
Dale was born on January 6, 1933, in Niota, Illinois to Edgar Merle and Phoebe Glancy Hutson. The family soon moved across the river to Fort Madison, Iowa. Dale grew up attending the First Methodist Episcopal Church and church has always been an important part of his life. He was active in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts and developed a love for camping and outdoor activities that continued throughout his life. In high school Dale was an avid athlete. He played football and was all conference his senior year. His nickname was ‘Little Dynamite’. He also ran track and played a little basketball and wrestled. He was a member of the Science Club, a writer for the school newspaper, and a member of the Junior Achievement Program.
On June 14,1953, Dale married his high school sweetheart, Nila Joan Jones. After completing his time in the Navy, he went back to Iowa State to finish his engineering degree. After college, he took a job in Akron, Ohio with Goodyear’s Aircraft Division. He worked on their radar project. Two years later, he moved the family to Cedar Falls, Iowa where he began a job in research for Viking Pump Co. In 1963, Dale received a call from NASA Test Division at Marshall Space Flight Center. They wanted him to come work for NASA and test rocket engine turbo-pumps, so he packed up the family and moved to Huntsville, Alabama.
Dale’s engineering career spanned 42 years in the fields of Mechanical Engineering, Management, Consulting, and new business development. He also had a home inspection business. He was always active in the Methodist Church wherever they lived and loved making the grits for the Men’s Breakfast each month. He loved camping, boating, water skiing, swimming, biking, square dancing, planning trips and traveling, photography, and flying the Cessna 172.
Dale is survived by his son, Dr. Leslie Dale Hutson (Talitha) of Scottsboro, AL; and daughters, Cathy Hutson Jowers (John) of Rabun Gap, GA, and Deborah Hutson Bagdigian (Robert) of Huntsville, AL; nine grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 18, 2025, at Aldersgate Methodist Church, with visitation beginning at 12:00.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Aldersgate United Methodist Men’s Group, 12901 Bailey Cove Road, SE, Huntsville, AL 35803, or the Alzheimer’s Association.