Ralph Lafon Seacat

Ralph Lafon Seacat, Commander, U.S. Navy, retired, 92 of Milltown, Indiana passed away May 21, 2023 at Baptist Health- Floyd.  He was preceded in death by his devoted wife of more than 54 years, the former Thelma Marie Archibald.  He was a member of the El Bethel Baptist Church where he was a trustee and a Sunday School teacher.

He was born on March 14, 1931 in Milltown to the late Orest and Thelma (Stephenson) Seacat.  He graduated from Milltown High School in 1949.  He entered Evansville College in the fall of 1949 and graduated in June of 1954 with the degree of Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering, cum laude.  He ranked tenth in a class of one hundred seventy-three graduates.  At graduation he continued full time employment with the Louisville Cement Company at Speed, Indiana.

He enlisted in the U.S. Navy on January 31, 1955.  After completing boot camp, he married Thelma Archibald on April 22, 1955.  After completing Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island, he was accompanied by Thelma for the remainder of his Navy career of 24 and one-half years.  During that career he served in Patrol Squadron TEN, Heavy Attack Squadron THREE, Carrier Air Wing Six, on the USS Enterprise CVAN 65, and on the USS Independence CVA 62 during the deployment to Vietnam.  He was stationed at the Naval Ordnance Laboratory in White Oak, Maryland, the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, the Naval Ordnance Systems Command, and the U.S. Navy Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia where he was Quality Assurance Officer for the shipyard.  Commander Seacat served as a line officer and as an Engineering Duty Officer.  He attended the Aviation Electronics Officer School, the Naval Justice School, Nuclear weapons assembly school, and the Naval Postgraduate School where he was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics.  Commander Seacat was placed on the retired list effective August 1, 1979.  Following retirement from the Navy, he with his wife Thelma moved to Milltown in a house across the street from where he was born.

A short time after retirement from the U.S. Navy he volunteered to serve as the Civil Defense Director for Crawford County.  He served as a volunteer in that position for over twenty years.  He served as a fireman and medical first responder with the Milltown Volunteer Fire Department.  He was a member of the American Legion, the U.S. Naval Institute, and a life member of the National Rifle Association.

Funeral services will be on Friday, May 26, 2023 at 11:00 am at the Brown Funeral Home in Milltown, Indiana.  Interment will follow in the El Bethel Cemetery near Milltown, Indiana.

Visitation will be on Thursday, May 25, 2023 from 4-8 pm and after 9:00 am until time of the service at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, all at the funeral home.

Rev. Philo Jones will officiate the service.

Brown Funeral Home in Milltown, Indiana is entrusted with the arrangements.

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