Edward Leroy Mullendore was born on March 15, 1913. He was the son of Bert Walter Mullendore and Martha E. Winters Mullendore. He served in the 602nd Bomber Squadron, 398th Bomb Group, as a Staff Sergeant and Top Turret Gunner of B-17 #42-102597 nicknamed ''Stinker'' during World War II.

On September 12, 1944, the ''Stinker'' embarked on its 41st mission targeting the synthetic oil refinery at Brüx (now Most), in the present-day Czech Republic. During the mission, the aircraft sustained significant damage from anti-aircraft flak and was subsequently attacked by a German Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter. The combined assaults critically impaired the bomber, compelling the crew to divert towards neutral Sweden in an attempt to avoid capture. Unfortunately, Stinker crashed into the Baltic Sea near Trelleborg, Sweden. Of the ten crew members aboard, only the co-pilot survived, and the remaining nine crew members perished in the crash.

SSgt Mullendore was reported Missing in Action and officially declared dead on September 12, 1944. His name is memorialized in the Tablets of the Missing in the Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial, Coton, South Cambridgeshire District, Cambridgeshire, England. He also has a cenotaph in the Mount Hope Cemetery, Peru, Miami County, Indiana, USA. Edward L. Mullendore's name is inscribed on the Anstey Window Memorial in Panel 2 (center), on Butterfly 6, in the top right wing (section B).

Source of information: b17flyingfortress.de, www.findagrave.com, www.398th.org