Stan Merrett will be remembered fondly as an innovator and a mentor.
Merrett’s funeral was held last Friday at Union Church at Lake Martin. Merrett’s career was in aeronautical engineering, and he had been around the Lake Martin area since the 70s. While he worked at Boeing and Lockheed Martin, helping to design the C-103 and C-5A, he also was a big part of the local volunteer fire department community.
He volunteered with Tallassee Fire Department, Friendship Fire Department and Union Fire Department. He also worked at Neptune in Tallassee for nearly 40 years, finding innovative solutions for rural fire departments.
Merrett had been with Union Fire since the beginning in 1982. He worked with them off and on through the years and made a big impact on the department. For 35 years, he served as the department’s treasurer and was a longstanding mentor.
Union Volunteer Fire Department Chief Brandon Pitchford said Merrett was a wealth of knowledge for all aspects of firefighting. Merrett helped with safety training, mentoring other volunteers and was pivotal in creating solutions for rural water supply.
Pitchford said a big barrier for many rural departments is finding ways to carry or siphon water when putting out a fire. Unlike cities, there’s generally not something like fire hydrants around to aid with that.
Pitchford said Merrett had a lot of devices of his own design that made getting water supply safer and more efficient for rural departments. Merrett created dry hydrants for the area and created devices for Union Fire that aided in moving water from one apparatus to another while on scene. On top of that, Merrett was a mentor for many, including Pitchford.
“He was super patient, extremely knowledgeable and he wanted the best out of everybody,” Pitchford said. “He will push you to get your absolute best … He was a true leader, and he taught all of us a lot.”
Merrett's reach was far. He trained firefighters not just in Elmore and Tallapoosa counties, but also around Alabama, Georgia and Florida. Due to Merrett’s many contributions and accomplishments in the firefighting and the aerospace industry, Alabama State Rep. Ed Oliver passed a resolution in Merrett’s honor.
“Stan Merrett’s life was marked by professional excellence, civic dedication, innovation and deep love for his family and community, leaving an indelible impact on the lives of countless individuals,” the resolution states. “Now therefore, be it resolved, that we honor the life and legacy of Stanley Leo Merrett, express our deepest condolences to his family, and recognize his extraordinary contributions to aerospace engineering, public safety and community service.”
