Dayle McClendon

Dayle McClendon, 92, passed away peacefully on January 24, 2026. Services will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, February 7th, at OakCrest Funeral Home, Waco, Texas. Burial will follow at the Dawson Cemetery in Dawson, Texas.

Dayle was born September 25, 1933 in Nevada, Texas. He was the oldest son of the late Pierce and Gladys McClendon and is survived by his two sisters, Mary-Sue Allen and Emma Bianchi.

He graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in Dallas, Texas. After graduation, he attended Texas A&M University, served in the US Army, and later moved to Wisconsin and attended Marquette University.

He spent a large part of his life working in the aerospace and defense industry, first at NASA in Houston, Texas where he worked on several space programs, and later in southern California at TRW (later Northrop Grumman). Besides his work, which he loved, he also enjoyed cooking, reading (especially science fiction), playing the piano, traveling, and spending time with his extended family at his parents' "farm" in Dawson, Texas.

He was dad to Mike McClendon and known as "Pops" to Elli Castro-Bordano and Roger Castro, whom he raised with his late wife, Beverly "Aunt Bev" Bordano.

Family and friends will fondly remember him for his listening ear, his sarcastic wit, and his quiet generosity.