Lt. Col. Louis Antoine Wintzer, 68, husband of forty-six years to Janice Ruff Wintzer, died Saturday, July 12, 2008, in Providence Hospital following a long illness. Mr. Wintzer was born in Statesville, N.C., September 24, 1939, and was a son of the late Charles Rudolph Wintzer Jr. and Annie Louise Davis Wintzer. He was a member of The Citadel, Class of 1961 and Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society. He held a master’s degree in science from the University of Oklahoma. He retired from the United States Air Force with the rank of lieutenant colonel in 1982, following a career which included assignments at NASA as part of the Apollo Project, development of the Air Force AWACS Program and a six-year assignment at the Pentagon. Upon moving to Columbia, he worked at the S.C. Department of Social Services as an Information Systems Manager until his retirement. Mr. Wintzer was a member of Trenholm Road United Methodist Church. He was an accomplished tenor vocalist and trumpet player. His love of music was evident in his service and participation in numerous church and professional choirs and community theater. Survivors, in addition to his wife, are daughter, Dana Wintzer Barnwell and her husband, Ashley; son, Scott Antoine Wintzer; daughter, Jennifer Louise Wintzer and her husband, Marc; brother, Charles Davis Wintzer and his wife, Robin and their daughter, Heidi Wintzer; sister, Ann Wintzer Wilson and her husband, Dean; brother-in-law, Sam Ezzell; brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Howard and Charlotte Ruff; three aunts, four nieces and six great-nieces and great-nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and sister-in-law, Sylvia Ruff Ezzell. The family would like to express their sincere appreciation to the doctors and staff of Providence Hospital, Associates in Internal Medicine and the South Carolina Oncology Associates. A special thanks is also extended to Trenholm Road United Methodist Church and The Spirit of Fellowship Sunday School Class for their care and support during Mr. Wintzer’s illness. A memorial service will be held Wednesday at 12:30 p.m., July 16, 2008, at Trenholm Road United Methodist Church with the Reverends Wayne Horne and Mollie Bame officiating. Interment for immediate family will precede the memorial service. The family will receive friends in the church parlor 11 a.m.-12 p.m. prior to the memorial service. Memorials may be made to Trenholm Road United Methodist Church, Choir Fund, 3401 Trenholm Road, Columbia, SC 29204, or South Carolina Oncology Associates Cares Foundation, 166 Stoneridge Drive, Columbia, SC 29210. Please sign online guest book at www.dunbarfunerals.com. Tags: 1961
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