Lieutenant Colonel Arnett E. Kilpatrick, Retired, of Riceville, Tennessee and a former resident of Nassau Bay, died on Sunday morning, December 9, 2018.

Arnett was born on April 28,1918,in Athens, Tennessee, to the late Elias and Elizabeth Shoemaker Kilpatrick. He graduated from Sweetwater High School in Sweetwater, TN and earned a degree in Mathematics from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. He was of the Protestant faith and was a member of Keith Memorial United Methodist Church.

Arnett was a veteran of WWII, serving as a Navigator on B-17s and flying 30 combat missions over enemy-occupied territory while stationed in England with the 8th Air Force. During the Korean War, he was assigned to the Training Command, training B-29 combat navigators to serve in Korea. Arnett received medals and awards, including the Purple Heart, Air Medal with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters (OLCs), Air Force Commendation Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with one Silver Service and one Bronze Service star, American Campaign Medal, WWII Victory Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Air Force Longevity Service Award with 4 OLCs, and the Armed Forces Reserve Medal.

In his final years of service in the Air Force, Arnett began working in the Landing and Recovery division with the Space Program. He continued working with the Space Program at NASA, until retiring in 1977. Accomplishments include work on the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab,Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, and the Shuttle Space Programs. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his work on the Apollo 13 mission.

Arnett was preceded in death by one brother, Ernest Kilpatrick, and three sisters, Mabel Young, Lorene Haire, and Mae Shepherd. He was also preceded in death by brother-in-law and friend, Hascle Haire, and son-in-law, Herb Forsberg.

He is survived by his wife, Joyce Webb Kilpatrick; daughters, Darla Forsberg of Canyon Lake, TX, and Cheryl Brown (Rodney) of Austin, TX; step-daughters, Sandra Kilpatrick (Ambrose Havey) of Athens, TN, Joan Kirby of Soddy Daisy, TN, and Pat Segars of Rocky Face, GA; grandchildren, Jason Forsberg (Nicole) of Cibolo, TX, Cody Forsberg (Megan) of Abilene, TX, Aaron Brown (LanAnh) of Houston, TX, Kasey Richburg (Chris) of Orangeburg, SC, Kalee Parker (Jim) of Soddy Daisy, TN, Joshua Kirby (Amanda) of Soddy Daisy, TN, Tabitha Webb (Geoff) of Soddy Daisy, TN, Kurtis Segars (Emily) of Atlanta, GA, Andy Segars of Chattanooga, TN, and Tony Segars of Denver, CO; and eighteen great-grandchildren.

A funeral service will be conducted at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, December 11, 2018, in the chapel of Smith Funeral Home with Reverend Ambrose Havey and Reverend Dave Graybeal officiating. The family will receive friends at the funeral home prior to the service from 12:30 p.m. until 2:00 p.m. Interment will be in Arlington National Cemetery at a later date. Pallbearers will be his grandsons. Honorary Pallbearers will be members of the Home Service and Adult Fellowship of Keith Memorial United Methodist Church.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Home Service Class at Keith Memorial United Methodist Church, P. O. Box 1, Athens, Tennessee 37371-0001.

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