Leslie P. Gifford III was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Leslie P. Gifford Jr. of Valley Falls, N.Y. He was a 1966 graduate of Valley Central High School in Schaughticoke, N.Y., and received an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in 1966. He left the Naval Academy in 1968 and enlisted in the US Air Force.
Sergeant Gifford served as an air traffic control operator, assigned to a unit of the Air Force Communications Service, which provides global communications and air traffic control for the USAF. He served at Phu Cat AB, Vietnam and Wurtsmith AFB, Michigan.
He married Linda Winklemann on 13 March 1970. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward R. Winklemann of Novi, MI. Leslie and Linda had one daughter (Amy) and one son (Leslie Paul IV) before their divorce. Leslie was living in McLean, NY with his second wife, Kristie Gifford-Robinson (Rice), when he died on April 5, 2010. Leslie is survived by his second wife and his two children from his first marriage. A party in honor of Leslie was held at the McLean, NY Fire Station in April 2010.
Updated: February 06, 2020
Curator: Ed Moore