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MULLER -- Marie Muller, 78, passed away January 20, 2011. She is survived by her sisters, Louise Lesica, Amy Fittipaldi; brothers-in-law, Peter Lesica of Southold, NY, Vinnie Fittipaldi of Rio Rancho, NM; niece, Barbara Burzillo of Rio Rancho, NM; best friends, Donald Kelly, Ann Mundwitch, Karen Catt; and many friends at the Naples Art Association and FAA Retired Managers Group. Marie was preceded to the Lord by her loving husband, David; parents, Joseph and Emma Nasta; brothers, Nicholas and Joseph Nasta; niece, Carla Marie, all of whom will be there to greet her arrival. Marie Muller was born in New York City in 1932. She was lucky to have been given to the best parents God could find. She and her two brothers and two sisters enjoyed being raised in a loving family. Although times were hard during the Great Depression and WWII, they persevered. She went on to create a heroic career for herself in aviation field. Her love of flying was instilled in her when her father took her to the local airport to see the "aeroplanes" in the late 30's and 40's. She once said that flying solo on a beautiful day was like touching the face of God. Marie felt fortunate to have spent historic times in Washington, DC. She was definitely ahead of her time. Her exuberance and fearlessness carried her far in her adventurous and exciting career. It was only natural for her to "land" in Washington. As a pilot and aircraft owner she enjoyed working on aviation safety programs. It was especially significant that she learned to fly before learning to drive a car and she never really enjoyed driving, trusting fellow pilots more than other drivers. Her training included George Washington University and the Civil Aviation Academy. Her career extended from the Eisenhower years through the Reagan Administration. She felt she has a ring-side seat during the historical events of that era and witnessed up close the Civil Rights Marches; Viet Nam Protests; Cuban Missile Crisis; Kennedy Funeral; and Watergate. In 1960 she was "recruited" by the new Federal Aviation Agency from the Pentagon, Office of the Secretary for Defense Research and Engineering, to provide technical assistance for the preparation of the original feasibility study to automate the Air Traffic Control System. Her FAA career fast forwarded to other prestigious assignments. During the Cuban Crisis she was the only woman deployed to the FAA disaster relocation site as Administrative Officer; was borrowed by the White House to provide aeronautical input into the State of the Union Address; temporarily assigned to the Secretary of Transportation to expedite the contractual agreements on the Climatic Impact Assessment Program which proved that fleets of SST's would not harm the environment; and she provided Program Management Control of the development of the famous Supersonic Transport Aircraft (SST) requiring preparation of Congressional Hearing which due to the surrounding controversy numbered seventeen in one year. Many of her inputs are contained in the Congressional Record. In her "spare time" she was a member of several flying clubs and she decided to found the FAA Flying Club and was elected first President (and the only woman). It was a huge success. She was also an officer in Chapter 186 of the Experimental Aircraft Association and wrote articles for EAA's "Sports Aviation". She received numerous recognitions for her achievements from the FAA; the Flight Safety Foundations; Cessna Aircraft trophy; and EAA; as well as various flying clubs she helped to form like the Congressional Flying Club. Most of her career was during the "pre-women Lib" days but she never noticed as she kept forging ahead until a study was made of approximately 5,000 of her peers nationwide. Only 25 women in her field were at that level and only two were in Washington, D.C.; Marie being on of them. Subsequently in her career she was honored and named FAA Head of Women in Engineering and spearheaded a program to recruit more women engineers. Some of her other major career assignments and accomplishments involved dealing with the management of programs which were Congressionally funded annually at the Billion dollar levels. Highly technical programs such as Collision Avoidance, Fire Safety, Advanced Automation of Air Traffic, Wind Shear; and was a voting representative in group which formulated the FAA's Budget Submission to Congress annually. While Control Manager on the development of the Supersonic Transport she, along with her counterparts at Boeing (airframe) and GE (propulsion) established a real time control system to manage the program's prime and subcontracts, manpower, schedule and funding. Her model system was also used as an example by North American Aviation for NASA at Cape Kennedy. Other miscellaneous interesting assignments involved the construction of FAA Headquarters (FOB-10A), Dulles Airport, and the FAA Technical Experimental Center. Her grand adventure continued when she met and married David (the love of her life) in the "carpool". They had a remarkable love story which will last forever and beyond. They were a match made in heaven and will undoubtedly be joined there again. Her brothers and sisters were always a close loving concern of hers and she was proud of each one of them and her niece, Barbara. Upon retirement, Marie and David relocated to beautiful Naples full time in 1985, although they had been part time residents since 1976. Marie became emerged in the Naples Art Association and served in many official capacities including Vice President during the Funding and construction phases of the von Liebig Art Center; Executive Board member; and occasional watercolor artist. She was also a member of the Naples Woman's Club; Naples Players Guild; Naples Federation of Republican Women and contributor to the building of the Naples Philharmonic. David and Marie believed that Naples community was good to them and they should find ways within their means to contribute back. For recreation they were avid world travelers having enjoyed 42 cruises since retiring. A Viewing and visitation will be held from 4:00p.m. - 8:00p.m., Sunday, January 23, 2011 with a Rosary being recited at 7:00p.m. at Daniels Family Funeral Services, Sara Road Chapel, 4310 Sara Road SE and Meadowlark Lane, Rio Rancho, NM. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30a.m. Monday, January 24, 2011, St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, 1502 Sara Road SE, Rio Rancho, NM. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers the family has requested that memorial donations be made in her memory to the Naples Art Association, 585 Park Street, Naples, FL 34102, 239-262-6517. To view funeral information or leave condolences please visit www.danielsfuneral.com. Arrangements are entrusted to: Daniels Family Funeral Services Sara Road Chapel 4310 Sara Road SE Rio Rancho, New Mexico 87124 505-892-9920
        Published on: Sun January 23, 2011