Samuel Merlo Obituary

Longtime Cortez resident and attorney at law Samuel J. Merlo died Saturday, Sept. 4, 2010, at his home. He was 88.

Mr. Merlo was born to Sebastiano "Charles" and Concetta "Anne" Merlo on Feb. 9, 1922, in Nazareth, Pa. He had 10

brothers and sisters.

At the age of 18, Mr. Merlo joined the Army Air Corps in January 1940. He was stationed at Wheeler Field in Hawaii

and became a friend of James Jones, who later wrote From Here to Eternity.

On the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, while returning to Schofield Barracks from church, he saw aircraft overhead with the

Rising Sun on the wings. He was strafed but escaped injury that day. Mr. Merlo was promoted to second lieutenant when

he graduated from Navigation School.

He later taught navigation to other aviators in Texas. As a navigator, stationed at Grafton-Underwood Airfield in

England, he flew 23 combat missions in B-17s over Germany with the 384th Bomb Group. On April 13, 1944, while on the

24th mission, his plane was shot down, south of Frankfurt. Five of his crew members were killed. Mr. Merlo and four

others were able to bail out, but Mr. Merlo suffered lifelong injuries. He and his fellow survivors were captured and

became prisoners of war in Germany in Stalag III, the same camp where the "Great Escape" took place.

At the close of the war, as the Russians were advancing, Mr. Merlo and thousands of other prisoners of war were

marched for days in subzero temperatures, and hundreds froze to death. Ultimately, he and his fellow prisoners were

liberated by Gen. George Patton's armed forces in May 1945. During his service, he received two Purple Hearts. He

retired with a disability pension Jan. 13, 1946. At the time of his discharge, he held the rank of captain.

Mr. Merlo married Betty Townsend. The marriage later ended in divorce.

He went on to earn a law degree from the University of Denver with the help of the GI Bill. Mr. Merlo earned his

license to practice law in 1954, and he and his wife, Betty, moved to Dove Creek. He practiced law with Guy Dyer

there for a year until he moved to Mancos and practiced law in Cortez from 1955 to 1995. His family said Mr. Merlo

loved the law and enjoyed assisting people with their civil and criminal problems.

Mr. Merlo met his future wife, Grace Storey, in California, where she practiced law. They wed Nov. 1, 1968, in Las

Vegas, forming a partnership in both law and marriage. The law partnership ended in 1987, when Gov. Richard Lamm

appointed Mrs. Merlo as the 22nd Judicial District Court judge. The couple officially retired in 1995, but because of

Mr. Merlo's love of law and helping others, he occasionally took on a case.

During their retirement, the Merlos enjoyed exploring the country in their motorhome, visiting family and friends and

planting trees on their property in Cortez.

Mr. Merlo is survived by his wife of 41 years, Grace Merlo, of Cortez; sons Anthony Merlo of Boulder and Marc Merlo

of Las Vegas; sister Nina Merlo of Nazareth, Pa.; one granddaughter; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2010, at Ertel Memorial Chapel, 42 N. Market St. in

Cortez.

To send condolences online, go to the obituary section at www.ertelfuneralhome.com.