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Benjamin S. Goodwin, ME 39, of Spartanburg, S.C., on Jan. 26. Also a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College, he was a retired colonel and technical director of test and evaluation command in the Army, having worked as a mechanical engineer. Mr. Goodwin served as a member of the Retired Officers Association, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, American Legion and National Defense Industrial Association.
Benito Julian Thomas “B.J.” Nickelsen, CE 34, of Gulf Breeze, Fla., on Jan. 5. Mr. Nickelsen retired from Nickelsen Cabinet Co. in Pensacola. He served in the Army as a reservist for 20 years and in active duty from 1941 to 1945, achieving the rank of lieutenant colonel with the Corps of Engineers. A church choir member and Eucharistic minister, Mr. Nickelsen served five years as a Scoutmaster and received the St. George Scout Medal. While a co-op student at Tech, he was a member of Scabbard and Blade, the track team, ROTC and Phi Epsilon Kappa.
Gordon B. Cauble, ME 40, of Tucson, Ariz., on Dec. 3. A retired Army brigadier general, he earned an MBA from Harvard Business School; was a signal officer of the 29th Infantry Division, going ashore on D-Day; and later served in the Korean and Vietnam wars. A founding member and past president of the Tucson Corvair Club, he owned as many as 22 Corvairs over the years, including one that was named the grand award winner at a national Corvair convention. He also was a member of the Arizona Georgia Tech Club. Survivors include his son Thomas, IE 69, and grandson Matthew, a College of Engineering student.
Alvin Theron George, Cls 45, a resident of Grayson, Ga., on Jan. 25. An entrepreneur with businesses in Georgia and Alabama, Mr. George worked for Miller & Miller and graduated from the Atlanta Division of the University of Georgia in 1956 before launching his first business. He left Tech to enlist in the Army Air Corps and served with the 73rd Bomb Wing in World War II, completing 33 missions over Japan as a central fire control gunner on B-29s. Mr. George, who earned a pilot’s license in 1966, collected World War II warplanes and for several years was a member of the Commemorative Air Force.
Charles H. Greene, Cls 43, of Lakeland, Fla., on Jan. 15. Mr. Greene, who graduated from the University of Tennessee, was a registered professional engineer, a member of the Florida Engineering Society and an Army veteran of World War II. A participant in Boy Scouts activities for 54 years, he received the Gulf Ridge Council’s Silver Beaver Award. Mr. Greene also was a lay leader and a Sunday school teacher at his church.
Mercer Harris Johnson, IM 42, of Oakwood, Ga., on Dec. 2. Mr. Johnson retired from Lockheed Aircraft Corp. after 35 years as an engineer. A World War II veteran who served in the Philippines and New Guinea, he was a deacon at his church. Memorials in his name may be made to the Georgia Tech Foundation.
Robert Landon Kimbrough, Arch 41, of Seattle, on Dec. 13. He retired from Boeing in 1986. During his career, he was involved in facilities management and worked on the Minuteman missile deployment and the building of the Everett plant. He participated in the ROTC program at Tech, graduating as a second lieutenant in the Army, and achieved the rank of major by the end of World War II. He continued to serve in the Air Force Reserve, retiring with the rank of colonel in 1967.
Ira Thomas “Tom” Layfield, TE 49, of Cumming, Ga., on Jan. 1. He worked as an engineer for the General Services Administration before becoming the director of engineering services for the CDC in Atlanta. A graduate of the Georgia Military College in Milledgeville, he was a lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps, flying B-25s in World War II and serving as a transport pilot in the Korean War.
William Howard “Mac” McKee, MS AE 47, of Atlanta, on Jan. 27. Mr. McKee joined Lockheed Georgia in 1953 and became its Federal Aviation Administration coordinator, retiring in 1987. He received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Oregon State University and began his aviation career working with Boeing Aeronautical and Pan American Airways. He was commissioned in the Air Force in 1942 and later served in the Civil Aeronautics Administration for many years as a flight test engineer.
Moses Collins Murphey, ChE 43, of Sewickley, Pa., on Jan. 7. He retired as chief plant engineer of Koppers Co./Arco Polymers in 1985. A deacon and elder at his church, Mr. Murphey enjoyed golf, stamp collecting and ballroom dancing.
Harry W. Ormand Jr., TE 48, of Thomaston, Ga., on Nov. 3.
Manley Earl Porter, EE 49, of Columbia, S.C., on Jan. 14. After retiring from the Air Force as a major in 1966, he continued to work in the aerospace field, working on the Apollo program with NASA and the Army’s missile defense system. Following service in the Army Air Corps during World War II, he enrolled at Tech and earned an Air Force Reserve commission as a second lieutenant. He entered the Air Force in 1949 and served in staff positions in nuclear weapons maintenance and aerospace programs. He was a Mason and a member of Scottish Rite.
Thomas Gibson Preacher, Cls 44, of Atlanta, on Dec. 10. Mr. Preacher retired in 1989 after a career in which he worked with the Yancey Co., RCA and Southco Sales. He left Tech to join the Navy during World War II, serving as a first-class sonar man aboard PC487. He was a member of the Kiwanis Club and the Phoenix Society.
Wilbur Carl Riddell, IE 48, of San Antonio, on Dec. 25. A member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity, Mr. Riddell worked with George C. Vaughan & Sons and Kenro Inc. During his career, he served as chairman of the board and president of the American Architectural Manufacturers Association.
Orrin Warner Robinson Jr., EE 47, of Redwood City, Calif., on Jan. 16. Following graduation from Tech, Mr. Robinson moved his family to the Philippines, where he assumed the directorship of the largest pineapple cannery in the world. Mr. Robinson served as a lieutenant in the Army Signal Corps during World War II.
Ralph C. Rogers, IE 49, MS IE 51, of Holiday, Fla., on Oct. 22. Mr. Rogers retired from the J.C. Penney Co. He was a member of Alpha Phi Omega at Tech.
Oscar M. Smith, Cls 45, of Rome, Ga., on Jan. 9. Mr. Smith, who graduated from the University of Georgia School of Law in 1948, was a partner in the firm of Smith, Shaw, Maddox, Davidson and Graham. He practiced law in New York, Atlanta and Rome for 40 years. He was the attorney for the Hospital Authority of Floyd County for 18 years; a director of the Home Federal Savings and Loan Association for 23 years; and a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. During retirement, he was a national champion builder and flyer of rubber-powered, scale model planes. During World War II, he served three years in the Army, achieving the rank of first lieutenant.
Charles Cooke Speakes, ME 43, of Benoit, Miss., on Jan. 9. Mr. Speakes worked as an engineer in the flight test division of Curtiss-Wright Aircraft Corp. in Ohio and for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Cotton Ginning Laboratory in Stoneville, Miss., prior to returning to his hometown of Benoit, where he raised cotton, soybeans and rice until his retirement in 1996. A member of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity at Tech, Mr. Speakes, or “Cookie” as he was known to friends, was in the Army Air Corps from 1943 to ’46, serving as a first lieutenant technical supply officer, maintenance engineering officer and B-29 bomber flight engineer. He was a past president and director of the Benoit Gin Co.
Robert Earl Steele Sr., Cls 49, of Dalton, Ga., on Jan. 7. He retired as owner and general agent of Steele Insurance Agency.
Gorman R. Carey, EE 51, of Deltona, Fla., on June 29. A retired electrical engineer, Mr. Carey participated in Tech’s co-op program.
William Dewey Courtney, EE 52, of Charlottesville, Va., on Jan. 17. Mr. Courtney had a 40-year career as an electrical engineer for Sperry.
James Marion Goodson Jr., IE 50, of Birmingham, Ala., on Jan. 1. He was an engineer with TCI and Vulcan Materials and later worked in the agricultural lime and cement industry at Cheney. An Army Air Corps veteran, he was a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity and the Waste Reduction and Technology Transfer Foundation in retirement.
Ira Ulmont Grant, IE 53, of Marietta, Ga., on Dec. 22. A Navy veteran, he retired from General Motors Corp., for which he worked in management for more than 35 years.
Max D. Harris, EE 50, MS EE 56, of Stone Mountain, Ga., on Jan. 8. He retired as a quality electronics engineer after 36 years with Scientific Atlanta.
Robert Stone Haywood, IE 54, of Forsyth, Ga., on Dec. 10. He retired as the owner and operator of Southeastern Metal Products in Atlanta in 2005. An Army veteran of the Korean War, he was a past president of RICA, an organization for Korean War Ranger veterans. Mr. Haywood had served as a deacon at his church since 1963.
John S. “Jack” Heery Jr., Cls 52, of Savannah, Ga., on Jan. 14. In a 38-year career with the Army Corps of Engineers, he was active in the design and construction of the Clark Hill Dam and other large hydroelectric projects in the Southeast as an electrical engineer and served as emergency manager for disasters, focusing on hurricane management.
John Kay, ME 52, of Greer, S.C., on Jan. 22. Mr. Kay retired from Texaco Inc. as a sales engineer. He served as a Navy pilot during World War II.
Charles D. “Dwight” Keene, ME 55, of Tampa, Fla., on Jan. 13. He served as a first lieutenant in the Army.
Ronald Kolman, Arch 57, of Savannah, Ga., on Dec. 1. After graduating from Tech, Mr. Kolman returned to his hometown of Savannah to establish a practice, which now is Lominack Kolman Smith Architects. He served six terms as president of the south Georgia chapter of the American Institute of Architects; received awards from both the Georgia and Savannah chapters of the organization; and in 2001 became an AIA fellow. His service to the community included work with the Historic District Board of Review and Historic Savannah, as well as many city and county appointments. Mr. Kolman also loved woodworking and was a member of the Low Country Woodturners.
Robert Lusk, IM 52, of Largo, Fla., on Jan. 6. A letter winner in football and baseball at Georgia Tech, he was a member of the Sports Hall of Fame at the Institute as well as the Old Timer Hall of Fame in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Arthur H. “Art” Marthens Jr., EE 50, of Annapolis, Md., on Nov. 19. He retired from the Rural Electrification Administration telephone program in 1987 after 23 years of service. Before moving to the Washington, D.C., area, he lived in Galion, Ohio, where he was employed by North Electric from 1950 to 1961. During World War II, Mr. Marthens served in New Guinea and the Philippines with the Army 24th Division, 19th Infantry Regiment.
Jerry Howard Nabors, IM 58, of Niceville, Fla., on Dec. 1. He retired from Northrop Grumman after 18 years as the flight test director at Eglin Air Force Base. He attended Tech on a football scholarship and was commissioned in the Air Force after graduation. He retired from the Air Force as a colonel in 1985 after 27 years of service in which he logged 5,700 hours in flight as a fighter pilot and flew 188 combat missions. He received the Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal and Order of the Sword. A lifetime member of the Air Force Association, he was a past president of the State of Florida AFA and Eglin chapter of the AFA and a member of the Emerald Coast Military Affairs Council and Georgia Tech Athletics Hall of Fame. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Arkansas and graduated from the Navy War College.
Thomas M. “Tom” Randall, EE 53, MS EE 71, of Chamblee, Ga., on Jan. 13. After serving in the Army Signal Corps, he began a 32-year career with Lockheed as an electrical engineer.
Henry Richardson Read Sr., IM 51, of Atlanta, on Dec. 8. He was president of the food brokerage company RMCBS and co-founder of Ready Trucking Co. He served as president of the Atlanta Food Brokers Association. Mr. Read joined the Marines after high school and was commissioned in the Army after graduating from Tech, where he was president of Chi Phi fraternity. He was stationed in Tokyo while serving as a commissary officer.
Esperanto J. “Simmy” Simicich, ME 54, of Cocoa, Fla., on Oct. 2, 2008. An Army veteran, he worked in the aerospace industry for several years before forming Ti-Co Medical Devices. After retiring in 2004, he continued to pursue a lifelong love of aviation. Mr. Simicich participated in Tech’s co-op program.
Joseph M. Szablowski, ME 54, of Fort Worth, Texas, on Jan. 21. After retiring from engineering in the late 1970s, he was an adjunct professor in the physics department at Texas Christian University and a real estate broker. In a 20-year career with General Dynamics, now Lockheed Martin, Mr. Szablowski was a mechanical engineer on the B-58 jet project. He also worked as a consultant at Global Graphics, Baldwin Electronics, Spinks Aircraft and Motorola. Mr. Szablowski served as an artillery sergeant at Fort Knox, Ky., during World War II. He was a past president of the Fort Worth-Dallas Georgia Tech Club and a longtime member of the American Society of Metals and Lockheed Martin Management Club.
Georges “Tom” Spencer Thenault, ME 53, of Harwich Port and Yarmouth Port, Mass., on Jan. 9. He was an engineer manager in the small engine aircraft group at General Electric for 40 years. His career included three years in France working with Airbus and Snecma. A Fulbright scholar and member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon at Georgia Tech, he received a master’s degree from Northeastern University.
Robert Bradley “Bob” VanTassel Sr., Text 51, of Baton Rouge, La., on Dec. 15. He earned an MBA from the University of Virginia and spent his career working in the textile manufacturing industry. An Army Air Forces veteran of World War II, he was awarded the World War II Victory Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Service Medal with two silver stars and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon with one bronze star. He enjoyed deep-sea fishing. Survivors include his son Robert B. “Brad” VanTassel Jr., ChE 77.
Arthur B. Ward III, EE 57, of Tallahassee, Fla., on Dec. 23. Mr. Ward retired from the state of Florida as an electrical engineer in computer program design. He received a master’s degree from Rutgers University and was a member of the Gulf Winds Track Club and the Economics Club of Florida.
Terrell H. “Ted” Yon Jr., AE 52, IE 56, of Cocoa Beach, Fla., on Jan. 24. Mr. Yon worked with Plantation Pipe Line, Lockheed Aircraft, Avco Aerospace, North American Rockwell and RCA Aerospace. A member of the Experimental Aircraft Association for more than 50 years and an associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, he designed and constructed experimental aircraft in retirement.
Richard Kirven Brantley, PhD Chem 63, of Wilmington, Del., on Dec. 21. Also a graduate of the University of Virginia and Emory University, Dr. Brantley was a senior research chemist in the industrial and biochemical division of DuPont before becoming associated with the chemistry department of the University of Delaware. He wrote many scientific articles and held numerous patents.
John Robert Canada, PhD IE 66, a resident of Wilmington, N.C., on Jan. 20. Dr. Canada began his career at North Carolina State University in 1965, serving as a professor of industrial engineering and associate dean of engineering before retiring in 1992 and working as a labor and commercial arbitrator. Dr. Canada was the author or co-author of eight engineering textbooks and served as regional vice president and fellow of the American Institute of Industrial Engineers. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Virginia Tech and served in the Army and the Army Reserve.
Charles Edward “Chuck” Cooper Jr., AE 63, MS AE 66, of Huntsville, Ala., on Dec. 2. Mr. Cooper retired from the Space and Missile Defense Command in 1991. He enjoyed woodworking, sports and NASCAR.
James M. “Jim” Davis, EE 60, of Carrollton, Texas, on Dec. 8. He worked as an electrical engineer for his father’s company before deciding to go to seminary in the 1970s to become a Presbyterian minister. He served as a pastor at churches in Texas and Louisiana and retired after working as a funeral director. Before attending Tech, where he was a member of Sigma Nu fraternity, he earned a bachelor of arts degree from Rhodes College.
Carl Bernard Drees Jr., ChE 65, MS ChE 71, PhD ChE 72, of San Rafael, Calif., on Nov. 26. A member of Chi Psi, he moved to California to join Chevron Overseas Petroleum. Dr. Drees worked for Chevron for 30 years, most recently in international human resources.
David V. Fetters, IM 65, of San Francisco, on Oct. 28. He retired from the Navy. A participant in the co-op program at Tech, Dr. Fetters received a doctor of medicine degree from Emory University in 1969.
Raymond Earl Fulghum, EE 66, of Houston, on Jan. 7. Also a graduate of the University of Houston, he worked for many years for Houston Lighting & Power Corp., MD Anderson Cancer Center and The Home Depot.
W. Lane Greene, Arch 66, of Atlanta, on Dec. 20. As a preservation architect, he worked on the restorations of the Morton Theatre in Athens, Madison-Morgan Cultural Center and Morgan County Courthouse as well as the renovations of many antebellum houses. Mr. Greene served on the board of directors for the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation and the Urban Design Commission of Atlanta as well as the review board for the National Register of Historic Places. He served in the Marine Corps prior to attending Tech.
Thomas Larkin Harbin, Cls 60, of Roswell, Ga., on Aug. 10. A Navy veteran of the Korean War, he was an architect and a member of the Georgia wing of the Civil Air Patrol.
Robert Harold “Robbie” Horak, IE 68, of Roanoke, Va., on Dec. 30. A member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Tech, he worked in the HVAC industry following graduation.
George V. Miller, IM 60, of Jupiter, Fla., on Dec. 3. A career naval aviator, he flew 12 planes during service in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Grenada incident. After retiring from the Navy as a commander, he worked as a computer specialist with Burroughs Corp. and Marriott Corp. and taught computer science at Strayer University in Washington, D.C. He also served many years with the Air Force Data System Design Center through the Department of Defense.
Walter Garland Strong Jr., Cls 62, a resident of Carlyss, La., on Dec. 3. A co-op student at Tech and graduate of the Louisiana State University Law Center, he served in the Navy from 1966 to 1992. He was captain of the USS Robert E. Peary and earned three Legion of Merit awards. He was a weather watcher for KPLC Channel 7 news.
C. Nolan Maddox, IM 71, of Philadelphia, on Dec. 6. He worked in the oil business in Denver before moving to Virginia, where he worked in computers and as a stockbroker.
Eugene Parris “Gene” Nottingham, MS EE 70, of Tucker, Ga., on Jan. 14. He was one of the founders of Cinetron Computer Systems Inc., for which he served as vice president of engineering for more than 28 years. Cinetron was an Atlanta manufacturer of computer-controlled motion picture animation and optical effects equipment with clients that included the Walt Disney Co., Universal Studios, MGM, ABC and CBS. His electronics and mechanical designs for Cinetron led him to receive an Academy Award for technical achievement from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as well as a Technical Achievement Award from Eastman Kodak Co.
John M. Reynolds II, ChE 73, of Aiken, S.C., on Dec. 23. He was a nuclear engineer for the Department of Defense naval shipyard in Charleston, S.C., for 20 years. After retiring from the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in 2007, he joined Parsons Corp. as a project engineer.
Willie Gaddy “Bill” Utley, IM 76, a resident of Quitman, Miss., on Dec. 10. He was employed by Eagle Metal of Dallas.
Karl Davis Peters, CS 96, of Duluth, Ga., on Jan. 10. A student at Georgia Perimeter College, he was to complete the college’s sign language interpreter program this semester. Mr. Peters spent many years working for Intel Corp. in Santa Clara, Calif.
Eric C. Smith, Arch 95, of Lawrenceville, Ga., on July 11. He was a former structural engineer with GPWD Consulting Engineers.
Emily Piper McGill, IntA ML 06, of Atlanta, on Jan. 11. A member of Phi Mu sorority and Campus Christian Fellowship at Georgia Tech, she participated in mission work in Mexico, Chile and Ghana.
Daniel Phommathep, CS 01, of Bonney Lake, Wash., on Jan. 21, after a two-month battle with cancer. A co-op student at Georgia Tech, he had worked as a software design engineer with Amazon.com and Big Fish Games Inc. and as a Web developer for Redfin.com.
George H. Adams, 73, of Atlanta, on Nov. 20. Mr. Adams joined Georgia Tech in 1968 and retired as associate director of continuing education in 1995.
Jack Kenneth Hale, 81, of Atlanta, on Dec. 9. Dr. Hale spent many years teaching and performing research in mathematics at Brown University and Georgia Tech. His numerous awards included a Guggenheim fellowship, British Carnegie fellowship and Sigma Xi Sustained Research Award.
David Allen Kettler, 66, of Gainesville, Ga., on Nov. 20. He retired as the BellSouth vice president in charge of the science and technology organization and chief architect for the BellSouth Network then spent a few years as managing director and general partner of HIG Capital Management. Dr. Kettler served on the Georgia Tech College of Computing advisory board.
Glendal LaRowe, 88, of Gainesville, Ga., on Dec. 15. Mrs. LaRowe’s nursing career included a stint as head nurse at the infirmary at Georgia Tech. She later became a potter. In 1969, she and her husband, John LaRowe, Arch 52, who survives her, founded the Mark of the Potter craft shop in northeast Georgia.
Robert N. Lehrer, 88, of Atlanta, on Jan. 25. Dr. Lehrer taught at Purdue, Oregon State University and Georgia Tech before establishing an industrial engineering department at Northwestern and then a similar program in Mexico at the Universities of Guadalajara and Guanajuato. He returned to Tech as an associate professor and later became the director of industrial and systems engineering, retiring as director emeritus. He served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Industrial Engineering and was a recipient of the Frank and Lillian Gilbreth Industrial Engineering Award, the highest award bestowed by the Institute of Industrial Engineers.
Frederick H. Steen, 102, of Meadville, Pa., on Jan. 13. He taught at Georgia Tech for eight years before joining the mathematics department at Allegheny College, where he taught for 33 years. Dr. Steen, who wrote five books and numerous technical papers, had served as governor of the Mathematical Association of America and chairman of its Allegheny Mountain section. Dr. Steen’s hobbies included playing his marimba and performing magic.
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