Dale C. Dilling

Dale Carbaugh Dilling, 91, of Hopewell, passed into the eternal arms of his Lord and Savior Jan. 6, 2024.

Dale was born Feb. 5, 1932, in Roaring Spring, to E. Paul and Ethel (Carbaugh) Dilling, and grew up in Hopewell.

He was the devoted husband of Doris Edna (Black) Dilling for over 70 years, as well as the beloved father of Duane (Trudy); Diane, (Darrell); Deana and Deron (Bonnie). He was the grandfather to Haley, Deidre, Dana, David, Daniel, Davis, Devin, Dale, Katie, Daulton, Darcy, Logan, Carson, and Elizabeth and the great-grandfather to Addelyn, Rylan, Josiah, Levi, Evelyn, Caralyn, and Elijah.

As a young man, he drove truck hauling concrete, worked on the railroad in Hollidaysburg, and enlisted in the United States Navy in early 1952.

He served on USS Steinaker, with stops in Cuba and Kingston, Jamaica. During a weekend leave from boot camp, he traveled home to Hopewell, helped his dad, Rev. E. Paul Dilling move a refrigerator, and then promptly got married in the living room of the family home to the love of his life, ‘the prettiest girl on the Broad Top’, Doris, on June 10, 1952.

After his enlistment ended, he returned to Hopewell and became a substitute rural letter carrier on RD #2, Hopewell, while his dad was the carrier on RD #1. When E. Paul retired, Dale took over the RD #1 route and continued carrying mail until June 1, 1990.

When the ‘Hopewell bridge’ from Route 26 onto Route 915 was being repaired, he famously would walk across the river to and from the Post Office to start and end his day.

His retirement meant the end of an era. His grandfather George and his horse Maude; his father; and Dale carried mail on essentially the same mail route for 100 years, prompting him to be invited to be the keynote speaker at the opening of the National Postal Museum at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.

He was active in the Pennsylvania Rural Letter Carriers Association (PRLCA) for many years and served as Junior Sponsors with Doris for the PRLCA for 10 years.

He drove school bus for Northern Bedford County Schools for Ralph Cottle and Bob Batzel for many years, hauling generations of elementary and high school students from the RP Smith Elementary zone. He also operated a body shop at home for years, teaching his sons all he knew, encouraging Duane to pursue medicine instead of hand sanding metal.

He and Doris loved to travel. They would take the family to Vero Beach, Florida, to visit father E. Paul and his wife Etta. They also enjoyed going out west, particularly to Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks.

He, along with the family, always had a bountiful garden and acres of lawn to mow. He was a life-long Republican and had told Deana the day before his passing that he would be voting for Trump in November.

He was predeceased by his soulmate Doris on November 20, 2022; his parents, Rev. E. Paul and Ethel; brother G. Roy; sisters Pauline M. Shafer, and June, who passed before Dale’s birth; and his first granddaughter Hillary.

Friends and family will be received on Thursday, January 11, 2024, at Akers Funeral Home, 715 Church Street, Saxton, PA 16678 from 6 until 8 p.m. and on Friday, January 12, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. at Stonerstown Church of the Brethren, until the hour of the service.

A funeral will be held Friday, Jan. 12, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. at the Stonerstown Church of the Brethren with Pastor Mary Garvey officiating, followed by a memorial luncheon at the church.

Interment will be held privately at the Dilling family plot in Everett Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be made to Stonerstown Church of the Brethren.

Arrangements by Akers Funeral Chapel 715 Church Street, Saxton, PA 16678

Online condolences can be expressed at http://www.akersfuneralhome.com.