Irvin W. Little Sr., retired from DSP
Retired DSP Captain Irvin W. Little Sr., a lifetime resident of Little Creek, Mickey passed away Wednesday, June 26, gently at his home with his wife of 61 years Shirley S. Little after fighting the battle of heart disease and stomach cancer for three years.
He was born July 9, 1929, the son of the late Edward R. and Elizabeth J. Little in Little Creek. Mickey had served for 10 years in the Delaware National Guard and was honored with the Best Marksman Medal in 1955 from the governor, and was one of only 10 officers in the state of Delaware to receive such an honor at that time. Mickey attended the Harvard Associates Homicide School in Baltimore, Md. In the 1960s, after retiring, Mickey joined with the City of Dover F.O.P. in order to picket the power plant in Dover. He loved helping his community, and hosted the Boy Scouts of America Jamboree for Troop 3.
Mickey proudly served as mayor of Little Creek for two terms, and was instrumental in prohibiting 18-wheelers from driving through Little Creek. He also helped form a local police department, and held a picnic for the entire population of the town. From 1975-90, Mickey was employed by Delaware Technical and Community College in Dover at the Terry Campus. He was a lifetime member of the Little Creek Volunteer Fire Co., Badge 5. Mickey served his entire law enforcement career with the DSP at Troop 3 in Dover.
He enjoyed fishing, crabbing and just spending any time on the water. He had several boats, on which he spent most of the summers in Sussex County near Millville, with some very dear friends. The winters were the time that he went hunting, mostly deer, ducks and geese.
Mickey was preceded in death by his father and mother, Edward R. Sr. and Elizabeth J. Little, brothers Edward R. Little Jr. and John Brown Little, WWI and WWII veterans who served on foreign lands.
He is also survived by three sons, Irvin W. Jr. (wife Susan L.), Terry Brian (wife Nancy J. RN, children: Sgt. Bethany L. Huff, great-granddaughter Catheryne I. of Fort Bragg, N.C., husband Phillip Huff, Lindsay A.), Michael S. Sr. (Conni S., children E4 Spec. Army Res. Michael S. Jr. wife Danielle, Ashley E.) daughter, caregiver, and love of his life, Holly Elizabeth Little RN.
Service will be 1 p.m., Tuesday, July 2, at Pippin Funeral Home, 119 W. Camden-Wyoming Ave., Wyoming, where friends may call two hours earlier. Burial will follow in Barratt’s Chapel Cemetery, Frederica.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Delaware State Police Museum, P.O. Box 430, Dover, DE 19903.
