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Obituaries and memorials for former Digital employees may be submitted to info@decconnection.org.  Most recent are listed first.

Please follow links for special memorials and notes for founder/execs Ken Olsen, Win Hindle, Harlan Anderson and Stan Olsen.

 

************************** April 14, 2023 ********************************

Condolences to new member Rich Romano and other friends of Judy Christensen, 79, Berlin MA, who tragically died when her home blew up due to a gas leak last Thursday.  Judy's daughter Jill was injured in the explosion but will recover.  A memorial service will be held at 11 A.M. on Saturday, April 29, in First Parish Church of Berlin, 24 Central Street, Berlin. There are no public calling hours scheduled.

Rich asked to post this GoFundMe link for Jill's benefit, and in memory of Judy.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 2, 2023 ************************************

The DEC Connection regretfully announces the passing of one of our founding directors, Marilyn Goodrich, 89, Sudbury MA, on March 2nd. Marilyn worked for Digital for 20 years and retired after serving as the Event Planner for the Eastern States Sales Organization. In the mid-1990s, Maryland became the Director of Chapter 1776, one of the chapters of the Digital Retiree Association [DRA]. She became a Board member in 1997. She also served three years on the BOD of the Hewlett-Packard Retiree group as a representative from Digital.

Marilyn continued to serve on the DRA Board. In 2006, the DRA was enhanced with a website and a new name, the DECconnection. Marilyn was a major contributor to this effort and active in member outreach and retiree events. She remained on the Board until 2023. If not for Marilyn’s 20-year commitment to the Digital Retiree Association, it is unlikely that the DECconnection organization would exist today. Marilyn will be greatly missed by the DECconnection Board and by the many lives she touched in her efforts to bring Digital retirees together.

In addition to her devotion to all things Digital, Marilyn had many hobbies: gardening, bike riding, Alpine skiing, playing guitar in a Scottish orchestra, singing in the Chapel Choir and Gospel Group at her church.  She also enjoyed knitting, sewing, cooking, reading and history.  And of course spending time with her 2 sons and extended family.

 

************************** February 12, 2023 ********************************

I am very sad to report the passing of my friend Richard G. Smith, 75, Upton MA, from cancer in February.  I worked with Richard in my last position at Digital in the Low-End AlphaServer product management group.  He was a supportive friend, bright, funny, and a most dedicated employee.  He spent a total of 30 years of his career at Digital and HP.  I believe after reading it that he wrote his own obituary. I missed his demise and only learned of his passing after trying to get in touch after a few months (he had been told his cancer was in remission when we last spoke).  RIP, Richard; smooth sailing to a better place.     Ava Schutzman

 

************************** February 6, 2023 ********************************

The Colorado Springs group has reported the passing of their friend Gregory N. Redden, 66, in Feb. '23.  He lost his battle with metastatic cancer. Greg was born in Colorado Springs CO in 1956 by parents Lillie Pearl and George Redden. Graduate of Coronado High School, he was briefly in the U.S. Airforce and later worked for Digital Equipment Corporation for many years. He ended his career working at Oracle corporation before retirement.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 23, 2023 ********************************

 

Our condolences to DEC Connection member Ian Ferguson and other DEC Canada friends on the passing of John Lamb, Montreal ON.  Ian wrote: It is with deep sadness that at the family’s request I am announcing the passing of John Lamb. He remains the most charming man I have ever met and a dear dear friend. John passed last evening at home with his family after a long battle with illness. The family is planning for a small and private service. I’m sure Janet would love to hear from you who remember John’s central role in DEC Montreal and later Kanata and Toronto Headquarters. He was loved by many. Jeanette Lamb's email is: (jeanettelamb@cogeco.ca)

 

************************** December 7, 2022 ********************************

Condolences to Anker Berg-sonne and other friends of John Shebell, 75, Stow MA, who passed away after a period of declining health. John spent most of his career working for Digital Equipment Corp. where he was a Corporate Consulting Engineer. He led pioneering development of remote telemetry methods for support delivery, and the design of self-healing memory subsystems. He later became the Group Manager of Reliability/Maintainability Programs including Site Planning, Artificial Intelligence applications for service delivery, and differential analysis methods for fault diagnosis of complex systems. He also gave occasional graduate level seminars at universities in the US and Europe on system engineering topics. In the late 1980's John served as a consultant to the US Congress through the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment, and to other Government departments on topics relating to cyber security and worldwide computer network deployment.   Link to full obituary.

 

*************************November 23, 2022 ********************************

Condolences to Jim Porter and other Colorado Springs friends of John (Johannes Ernst) Kowall, 84, of Mobile AL, on his passing.  Jim sent the following:  My wife, Marguerite Porter, and I are former DEC employees in Colorado Springs. John Kowall (a retired DEC employee in CSSE (Customer Service Systems Engineering) in CX0) passed away a few weeks ago. I met John while I was in the CSSE group in CX01. We traveled to a few South Pacific countries to teach the local teams about the CX01 products. This photo of John Kowall at a restaurant in Hong Kong was taken by Marguerite.   Link to full obituary.

 

**************************November 16, 2022 ********************************

Sherri D. (Long) Murdock, 62, Colorado Springs, passed away on November 16, 2022, after living many difficult years with Multiple Sclerosis. Sherri graduated from Mitchell High School in 1978 and worked many years for Digital Equipment and the Olympic Volleyball Team. Before her MS diagnosis, Sherri was an avid bicyclist and outdoor enthusiast.

Link to full obituary.

 

**************************November 11, 2022 ********************************

Leta S. Levett, 70, who had worked in the Colorado Springs facilities, passed away suddenly on Friday, November 11, 2022.  Our condolences to her CXO friends.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 20, 2022 **********************************

James Magaldi wrote to let us know of the passing of his friend, Frank A. Kalwell, 87, of York ME. Frank attended Boston University in Business Administration and graduated in 1961. Upon graduation he began working for the start-up company Digital Equipment Corporation in Maynard, Massachusetts. He spent 32 enjoyable years at Digital in various dministrative positions; Frank was the Property Manager for the Merrimack facilities, in charge of Plant Engineering & Building Maintenance, Security, Office Services, Construction and remodeling offices in support of moves and rearrangement.   In 1992 Frank retired and relocated to York, Maine where he served on the York Board of Assessors Committee, York Hospital Ambulance Board, Sohier Park Committee and Mt. Agamenticus Facility Coordinator.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 26, 2022 **********************************

Sad news from Jack Richardson:  I am writing to inform you of the passing of Denny (Denzil J.) Doyle, 90, Ottawa ON, long-term executive of Digital Equipment of Canada, on October 26, 2022.

Denny joined Digital very early in 1962, as the first employee of Digital Equipment of Canada, headquartered in Carleton Place, Ontario. He was the Regional Sales Manager of DEC Canada under Ted Johnson for many years. In the early 70's, he moved the Canadian Sales and Manufacturing Headquarters to Kanata, Ontario. In the mid-'70's, he was named by Ken Olsen as President of DEC Canada and held that position until 1982.

At that time, he formed the company Doyletech and remained active across Canada as a highly regarded consultant and speaker throughout the hi-tech industry, specializing in the transfer of technology from the Canadian Government scientific laboratories to the industrial sector.
   He was appointed to the National Research Council of Canada in 1982. He co-founded Instantel Inc., an Ottawa-based supplier of instrumentation equipment and served on the board of directors for many successful Canadian high technology companies including Mitel, Newbridge Networks, and Gennum Corp. He also served as Chairman of Capital Alliance Ventures Inc., an Ottawa-based venture capital company specializing in technology investment.



In recognition of his accomplishments, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Engineering by Carleton University, granted fellowship in the Engineering Institute of Canada, received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee medal and was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada.

The wake and funeral will be held on Friday, November 11 and Saturday, November 12 respectively in the Ottawa area.  Link to full obituary

************************** October 26, 2022 ********************************

  Condolences to friends of Digital retiree Kanailal Raha, who passed away on 26 October at Kolkata, India.  We were informed by his brother-in-law, Arun Deb, who can be reached at email arundeb@msn.com.

 

************************** October 14, 2022 ********************************

 Our condolences go out to Kathy Jezior (kljezior@gmail.com) and family, and to his Digital friends, on the recent passing of her father, Colonel Anthony (Tony) M. Jezior, USA, (Ret.), 88, of Cary NC. Colonel Jezior graduated from Cathedral Latin High School in Cleveland, Ohio; United States Military Academy (B.S), West Point, New York, and Georgia Institute of Technology (M.S.), Atlanta, Georgia. He served for 23 years in the U.S. Army Infantry in locations throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. In Vietnam he served in the 1st Battalion, 16th Infantry Division (the Big Red One). Among his numerous awards were the Legion of Merit, Silver Star, Bronze Star with Second Oak Leaf Cluster, Purple Heart, and Combat Infantry Badge.  After retiring from the U.S. Army, Colonel Jezior was employed by Digital Equipment Corp. in a variety of management positions. After retiring from Digital, he did management consulting in Washington D.C. and Ohio.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 20, 2022 ********************************

 

Condolences to the CXO alums on the passing of their friend, Ron Holton, Colorado Springs CO:

We have lost our friend & DEC/Compaq/HPE Alumni Ron Holton. Ron’s daughter Harley reached out and he passed Tuesday, September 20th.  Ron retired March 2020 from HPE.  Ron worked in CXO with Power supply team, disk drives, and HW R&D.  Link to full obituary when available.

 

************************** September 19, 2022 ********************************

Condolences to Jack Mileski and other friends of Bill (William E.) Burns, 79, of Wilmington MA, who passed away on September 19.  Bill worked as a computer sales and marketing executive for Digital Equipment Corporation for most of his professional career.  He earned a certificate in executive leadership from the Graduate School of Industrial Administration at Carnegie Mellon University in 1991.  Jack writes that he and Bill worked together at our partner program (ASAP) at Digital.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 5, 2022 ********************************

Our sincere condolences to daughter Beth Miller and friends of DEC Connection member Ruth Armknecht, 89, Atlanta GA, on Ruth's passing. Ruth graduated from Lexington High School in 1950. A lifelong leaner, she went on to graduate from Simmons College in 1954. She furthered her studies by attending the Harvard Radcliffe Program in Business Administration. Later in 1970 she earned her Master's in Educational Administration from Northeastern. Ruth worked for Digital Equipment Corporation from 1974 until her retirement in 1992, including in the Educational Services organization. Ruth made her home in Concord MA until 2014 when she moved to Atlanta to be closer to her daughter. 

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** August 30, 2022 ********************************

We are greatly saddened to report the passing of DEC Connection member Ted (Theodore R.) Sares, 85, North Conway NH, only 4 days after receiving a diagnosis of stage 4 pancreatic cancer.  Ted spent his 1979-1992 Digital career in human resources and administration, including developing Digital's early retirement program circa 1990.  (He did a great job for those who took advantage of that program; I've often wondered how many start-ups were financed with those payouts.) Dennis Reardon, who informed us of Ted's passing, wrote: "Ted and I worked together at DEC and stayed in touch regularly for the past few years. Ted sent me an autographed copy of his book Shattered in 2012. Ted was great guy and a good friend and will be missed by many." In addition to DEC, Ted had at least two other careers - he was a long-time boxing writer (link to a boxing writer obituary Dennis sent), author of two boxing books (Ted fought in the Golden Gloves and was a Hall of Fame member of Ring 4 in Boston), obtained his Ph.D., and in his late 70s became a world-class powerlifter, winning competitions well into his 80s.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** August 3, 2022 ********************************

Condolences to Frank Ignachuck and other friends of DEC Connection member Ann S. Hurd, 73, Rockport MA, who passed away following a long-term cancer illness. A 1967 graduate of Gloucester High School, she attended Mount Holyoke College in Hadley, MA, graduating with an art degree in 1971. After college, Ann moved to Boston where she worked in the Massachusetts State House and the admissions office at Boston University. In 1983, Ann moved to Bolton, MA, after accepting a job as the State & Local Government Relations Manager for Digital Equipment Corporation. One of her very first projects for Digital was convincing state officials an exit ramp was needed for the swelling traffic numbers in the Marlboro area. In 2001, Exit 23C for Simarano Drive on I-495 opened to the public. She proudly called the ramp "her exit" every time time she passed it on the highway. In 1998, Ann began working for Intel Corporation based in Hudson, MA.  Ann was married to John C. Rodenhiser, Jr., another long-term DECcie; John passed away in July 2016. Frank writes: I worked with Ann for many years during my time as a member of the Maynard Selectboard.  I particularly remember the afternoon she asked to meet with me for coffee in the MSO-1 cafeteria to tell me personally that Digital was going to close the Mill.  It was one of those days you never forget.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** July 19, 2022 ********************************

Thanks to Peter Kent for sending in this sad news about Rene Martinez Rene Martinez, 68, of Miami Beach, Florida and Mashpee, MA, and formerly of Holliston, MA, passed away unexpectedly on July 19, 2022. He was born in Havana, Cuba and emigrated to the United States at the age of six. His family moved from Miami to Bristol, RI in 1965. Rene became an outstanding student-athlete and proud member of the Bristol High School Class of 1973; he was later enshrined in the Bristol Athletic Hall of Fame. Rene continued to play baseball at Colby College where he earned a degree in Economics and was also a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. Rene worked for IBM and Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) prior to becoming an entrepreneur and co-founding two companies.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 24, 2022 ********************************

Our sincere condolences and thanks to son Nathan Harker (nathan.r.harker@gmail.com) for letting us know about the passing of his dad, DEC Connection member Scott Evans Harker, 77, of Groton MA, on 24 June 2022. Scott was a graduate of the Moses Brown School in Providence, RI (1964), Boston University (1969), and Clark University in Worcester, MA (1985). Some of his proudest accomplishments were as a communications consultant for Digital Equipment Corporation in Marlborough, MA from 1975 to 1996; an activist for the disabled, advocating for and participating in multiple committees to help serve and protect disability rights in Groton & Nashua; and playing an active role in establishing an archive dedicated to his most beloved professor at Moses Brown.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Scott's honor to WCRB Classical Radio in Boston MA.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 14, 2022 ********************************

We are terribly saddened to announce the sudden passing of one of our DEC Connection volunteer directors, Barrie Hunter, 82, Marlborough MA, on June 14. Barrie had earned his BA degree from the University of Western Australia, and was a graduate of Digital’s MBA program at Harvard Business School.  He joined Digital Equipment in Australia in 1967; before he retired in 2005, Barrie spent nearly 40 years with Digital, Compaq and HP in services, sales, marketing and operations positions in the US, Australia, Asia Pacific and the General International Area.

In retirement, Barrie volunteered with Marlborough Community Services, the Hudson Food Pantry, and SOAR55. Barrie enjoyed golf, sailing, and skiing. He was an avid reader and enjoyed travel.  Barrie served as a volunteer director of our alumni association, The DEC Connection, for 10 years.  He and his wife Anne hosted several of our summer outings at their home.

Barrie passed away in his sleep, on 14 June 2022.  Our sincere condolences to his wife Anne and their family.  Barrie will certainly be missed.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 30, 2022 ********************************

 

Thanks and condolences to Lou DiFinizio, who  just wrote in:

I am saddened to report the passing of Louis (Lou) Edward Klotz, Jr., 76, of Bolivia NC, a good friend and longtime DIGITAL family member.  Lou passed yesterday of a long illness surrounded by his loving wife Patti and children. The old PDP 8 guys remember Louie, Louie and Louie from Brooklyn.  We left on the Eastern Air Shuttle from LaGuardia to Logan to begin our DEC adventure on July 6, 1966.  DEC Teck, PDP-8's, 10-hour shifts on the line, subs from the Maynard House of Pizza, dinner at Russo's and your first legal drink at the Powder Mill (we were 20 when we started).  We were near the launch pad when the DEC rocket took off for a magnificent flight. We were also on the pad as the rocket came crashing back to Maynard in the 1990's. Lou, RIP... I bet you can still hand load RIM.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 20, 2022 ********************************

Our condolences to Sue Lawrence-Longo and many friends of John Longo, 74, of Enfield CT, who passed away in May.  Sue says: My ex-husband worked for many years at DEC facilities in Maynard, Acton, and Nice, France. He acquired dozens upon dozens of good friends along the way.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 15, 2022 ********************************

His friend Richard Thistle wrote to us:  It is with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Carmine Tata, 77, Leominster MA, this past May. Carmine was a key member of the Maynard Board Shop and Plant Quality team, a great family man and friend to so many. He was one of the people who made DEC such a great place to work. He will be sorely missed by his family and all of us who were fortunate to know him. 

 

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 12, 2022 ********************************

Judy Kilgore reported via Colorado Springs: Brenda C. Wyrick, 81, passed away in May 2022.  Last I knew she was a teacher here in Colorado Springs. At DEC she was a safety engineer under Irving BurgBrenda was also a sister Cherokee and a member of our Diversity group DANCE (Digital American Native Council Effort). She obtained signed photos of Wilma Mankiller for the two of us. The photo of Brenda in the obit does not look like her at all, it may be from college days. I was very sad to learn that Brenda had passed away. She always seemed young at heart. Rest in Peace, Brenda.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 11, 2022 ********************************

Our condolences to friends of Eddie (Edward Fred) Trujillo, 64, of Colorado Springs, who passed away on May 11.  Eddie worked for Digital as a clean room technician for many years.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 7, 2022 ********************************

 

Condolences to Bob Kaplow and other friends of Randy (Randall Robert) Barth, 70, of Cicero IL, who passed away following a long battle with lung cancer.  Randy worked for DEC, Compaq, and HP  in the Chicago area from the 80s until a few years ago. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** mid-April, 2022 ********************************

Thanks to Kerry Bensman for reporting the sudden passing of Barry James Folsom, 75, Laguna Woods CA.  Our condolences to his many friends from Digital.  Barry James led the Rainbow group and introduction of Digital's personal computer from 1980-1985.  He went on to become an executive at Sun Microsystems and many more companies, then as a strategic turnaround consultant for technology companies.    Note from Editor: we have not been able to find an obituary.

 

************************** April 4, 2022 ********************************

Our condolences to ex-DEC son Mark Fredrickson and family, and to friends of Richard "Dick" Fredrickson, 90, Topsfield MA, who passed away in April. Mark writes that Dick's Digital career spanned 1973-1990 and being New England District Sales Manager in the 1970s was his favorite job in a long career. He also worked in both the Technical OEM and Commercial OEM groups. He loved Digital.   Mark's own Digital years (1983-1995) overlapped with his dad’s and it was a great thrill to run into people who knew him and always had nothing but praise for him.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 1, 2022 ************************************

Our condolences to Anker Berg-Sonne, Marilyn Jenney and other friends of Carl L. Crockford, 74, Goffstown NH, who passed away March 1 following complications from of Parkinsons and diabetes. Carl joined the DEC Education Marketing group in 1978 and moved to Tech OEM in the 80's before leaving in the early 90's.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** February 17, 2022 ********************************

Our condolences to CXO friends of Ronald Bowser, 76, of Colorado Springs CO.  Ron worked at Digital for 25 years. During that time, he also served as a Deputy Sheriff for the El Paso County Sheriff's department. He was proud of his active and reserve service in the Air Force, and his two tours in Desert Storm. Link to full obituary.  Ron's Memorial Service will be March 18th at 2 pm at St. James Church, 4516 Northpark Dr., 80918.

 

************************** February 16, 2022 ********************************

Condolences to Fritz Aumann and other friends of Jerry Butler, 81, Nashua NH, who passed away in February.  Fritz wrote this testimonial:  I have just learned of the passing of Gerald (Jerry) V. Butler, Jr. in February 2022. Jerry joined DEC in the late 60’s on the PDP-X and PDP-15 projects, eventually going to Computer Special Systems in Santa Ana CA, and Nashua NH, other DEC projects, and other companies. He was my boss, my mentor, my neighbor and GREAT friend. He turned CSS from a directionless, unprofitable, lack of customer focus and company strategic value group into a profitable, customer focused, employee, corporate asset.  I loved working with Jerry and will miss him, as will the CSS community which still lives. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** February 15, 2022 ********************************

We are sad to report hearing from Marguerite Avery about the demise of her father, Bill (William L.) Avery, of Stow MA, who led the PC development effort at Digital.  Bill succumbed to Alzheimer's Disease just before his 82nd birthday.  Marguerite said that Bill often remarked that his years at DEC were the best of his life professionally in terms of the work he did, and the caliber of his colleagues.

From the full obituary: Bill developed a passion for computers and after resigning his USCG post, he continued his education at North Carolina State University where he earned his Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering in 1968. He was hired by Burlington Industries Research Group to develop a distributed data acquisition and control system for their 130+ plants (which remained in use until 1991). In 1973 he was recognized by the IEEE as the outstanding young engineer in North Carolina, and was snapped up by Digital Equipment Corporation shortly thereafter to advance development for the PDP-11 family of industrial computers. In 1981, DEC president Ken Olson tapped Bill to develop their personal computer line, where he established the Rainbow and DECMATE Product Groups, achieving products for show within a nine-month window. After ten years at DEC, Bill played the field with positions at Data General, Sun Microsystems, Encore, Shiva, Intel's Supercomputer division, and Picturetel. He particularly enjoyed building PCs from scratch with his daughters.

 

************************** February 13, 2022 ********************************

Thanks to Mary Collins for informing us of the recent passing of her friend, Bud (Benjamin J.) Messar, 75, of Ashburnham MA, following a long illness.  Bud's wife Carol was also ex-Digital.  Over the years Bud worked in several computer companies, and promotional products companies in Informational Technology.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** February 6, 2022 ********************************

Thanks to Jack Richardson for sharing the sad news of the passing of Henry Joseph Crouse, Digital employee Badge #26, and V.P. of Strategic Relations.  His obituary is extraordinary for its concentration on Henry's Digital career and contributions - use this link to read it in its entirety.

Henry was instrumental in building DEC's worldwide supply base and introduced external resources as a corporate strategy. He is given great credit, along with others, for his role in DEC's tremendous growth in the 1970's and 80's employing more than 116,000 people and becoming a $14 billion corporation. He spent over 33 years at Digital in key positions; many described in the obituary.

 

**************************  February 3, 2022 ********************************

Our condolences to Eileen DerGurahian and other friends of Kevin E. Reid, 77, Andover MA who passed away in February.  Kevin was a Human Resources colleague who worked at DEC for several years in the Corporate Benefits department. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 20, 2022 ********************************

Our sincere condolences to Maureen Burness and all friends in CXO and elsewhere on the passing of her husband, Jack Burness, 75, Colorado Springs, who left us on January 20, 2022. Maureen said: With his bigger than life personality, humor, and intellect, he was loved and respected by so many people, including his devoted family. Born in Brooklyn, NY in 1946, he received his Engineering Degree from Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute and was employed by DEC, Maynard in the early days and then here in Colorado Springs. Many of you knew he had a huge appetite for the outdoors of Colorado and Martha’s Vineyard and joined him in his sometimes-disastrous adventures.

 

************************** January 20, 2022 ********************************

DEC Connection member Joe LaRose wrote to let us know about the death of a DEC employee and personal friend, Paul Guest, 77, Paris France, 20 January 2022. Paul was employed at DEC from 1978 through 1998.  He was the ‘Group Audit Manager’ for DEC Europe and he reported to me from 1980 through 1986, during the period when I was the ‘Corporate Internal Audit Manager’.  He also held finance management positions in the US and lived in Lynnfield MA for several years.  He returned to Europe in the mid 1990’s and lived in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, leaving DEC shortly after the Compaq acquisition.

 

************************** January 9, 2022 ********************************

Bill and Bettylou Long

Son Andrew Long wrote us to advise the DEC community of the passing of DEC Connection member William H. (Bill) Long, of Bourne MA, badge 659, on January 9, 2022, a week after his 89th birthday, in his sleep after a short illness. Mourning his loss are, among others, his love of over 70 years, Bettylou, their four children, and their nine grandchildren.

 

Bill Long joined DEC in 1963 and retired in 1987. During his DEC tenure he served in positions from PDP-8 Product Line Manager to Vice President OEM, Vice President Technical Group Marketing, and many others. In his own words, “…these were some of the best years of my life…”, working at a company, “…replete with bright, creative, hard-working folks who were a pleasure to be associated with.” He maintained many of his DEC relationships long after his departure. After retirement, Bill and Bettylou moved to Cape Cod, where he enjoyed new passions as an actor, carpenter, radio-reader for the blind, volunteer tax preparer, golfer, and grandfather. Words cannot express how much he is missed.

Andrew.Long@delta.com   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 7, 2022 ********************************

Dr. Duane T. Napp, 88, of Houston TX, passed away on Jan 7, 2022. He was born on November 5, 1933 in Owatonna MN. Duane Napp was a graduate of Austin Minnesota High School  and received his Bachelor of Science degree from University of Minnesota and Masters of Science from University of Michigan and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) from University of Minnesota. Duane began his career in the computer industry with IBM in 1969. As a chemist and manufacturing process engineer he was instrumental in the design of the IBM System/370, IBM 3031, IBM 3033, IBM 3091, IBM 3090, IBM 3091 during18 years with IBM. He joined Digital Equipment Corporation from 1987-1992, where he led the development of the revolutionary VAX/VMS 8000 and the fastest computer ever designed at Digital, the VAX/9000 team. Duane then joined the National Center for Manufacturing Science in Ann Arbor Michigan. Since his retirement in 1999, Duane authored sections of textbooks on Electronic Packaging and Manufacturing with IBM Fellow, Dr. Donald P. Seraphim, PhD.  After retirement he became a consultant until 2006 when he fully retired.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 3, 2022 ********************************

Our condolences to Bill Gordon and other friends of Jack (John) Duffy, 80, of Andover MA, who passed away on January 3, 2022.   Bill said Jack was "by far my best boss during 18+ years at DEC."  Jack started work at IBM on his graduation from Boston College in 1963 and would remain in the computer industry, working at Digital Equipment Corp for many years, before taking his final job as Manager of Management Information Systems for the Sisters of Saint Joseph, for the final years of his career. 

 Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 23, 2021 ********************************

We thank Galen Davis for sending in news and photos of Bill Seitz, and offer condolences to the DEC AZ family. William (Bill) Seitz, 77, of San Tan Valley, passed away in his home peacefully on Thursday, December 23, 2021.  Bill was born February 23, 1944 in Homestead PA, the 9th of 11 children. After returning from the Army, he married his childhood sweetheart on July 15, 1967. Bill then completed his Degree in Electrical Engineering from Pennsylvania Technical Institute and began working for Digital Equipment Corporation.  In 1976, Bill and his family moved to Phoenix, AZ. Galen commented that Bill had a long DEC career in Westfield and Phoenix.  He attended many of our AZ Alumni lunches and always had a positive attitude toward DEC and life.  He retired from Digital and focused on family and woodworking.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 10, 2021 ********************************

DEC Connection member Steve Rothman sent in news of the passing of Charles Francis Perrell, 72, Los Altos Hills CA.  Charlie worked at Digital from 1977-1983. He was P/L manager for the LA34 printer line in Terminals Marketing in one assignment. He relocated to Silicon Valley as a Director for the startup of Sun Microsystems, where he initiated and ran the company's international business. He later was a co-founder and Exec VP of Network Appliance Corp.  He was an angel investor and philanthropist as a retiree. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 1, 2021 ********************************

 

Thomas J. Eaton, 72, of Gloucester MA passed away peacefully December 1 at Kaplan House Care Dimensions, Danvers. He graduated from Catholic Memorial and Boston College Class of 1970 with a degree in finance. After service in the Massachusetts National Guard, Tom joined the National Bureau of Economic Research as an analyst. After "learning the ropes" at the Bureau, he moved on to Digital Equipment Corp (DEC). At DEC, Tom began his career rise domestically and abroad occupying financial management positions in the United States, Dublin, London, and Hong Kong. International postings continued for Conner Peripherals, and Seagate Technology.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 21, 2021 ********************************

Condolences to friends of Clarence J. Shanks, 88, of Colorado Springs who passed away on November 21.  He served as a US Army Military Police Staff Sergeant and retired in July 1973 at Fort Carson, CO. He later served with the El Paso County Sheriff’s Department and later retired from Digital Equipment Corporation. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 13, 2021 ********************************

Condolences to the DEC AZ group on the loss of their friend Norman Croisetiere, 77, of Glendale AZ, who attended the Phoenix Mfg alum luncheons with his wife Cindy. Norm, originally from Holyoke MA, had worked as a Supply Quality Engineer at Digital for 17 years; he worked at the Union Hills DEC facility. Sadly, Norm recently succumbed to a long battle with cancer. There is a military service for Norman Croisetiere, US Navy, on December 8, 10:30 am honors, National Memorial Cemetery. Escort Requested Chapel of the Chimes to National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona.

 

************************** November 13, 2021 ********************************

Condolences to the CXO group on the loss of their friend Hugh (Hubert S.) Nethercot, Colonel (USAF) Retired, 86, of Canon City CO. Hugh entered ROTC at Kansas State U, joined the USAF in 1959, where he was a highly decorated Air Force colonel, including the Bronze Star. In 1985 he retired from the Air Force, worked for the PGAV, an architectural firm, and then at Digital Equipment Corporation as the Facility Manager. He retired and became a snowbird in the Rio Grande Valley in TX for 18 winters. He and his wife Elaine returned full-time to Colorado Springs, then Parker CO, and this year, to Canon City. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 9, 2021 ********************************

Our condolences to the many friends of Mark Hardy Bramhall,73, of Acton MA and Paris, France, who passed away in early November.  Mark met Jan Kschinka at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota in 1966, when both were freshmen; they married a week after graduation in 1970 and had recently celebrated their 51st anniversary. Mark carried a double major in mathematics and physics at Carleton. He became intrigued by computers his freshman year, and spent his entire career as a computer programmer/software engineer. He worked for many years with Digital Equipment Corporation in Maynard, Nashua, and Merrimack. Mark was a star in Digital's software engineering world, having led the RSTS/E effort. (Friend Ian Waring reports that Mark was Mr RSTS/E - the microfiche had MHB all over the source code.)

Upon leaving DEC, Mark was employed as CTO for Symmetrix, Portal Solutions, Code Lab, Allin, and Pet Rock. After retirement, he accepted a job with Fermat, a start-up company in France, which fulfilled his long-held dream of living in Paris, while doing a job he found satisfying and delightful. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 9, 2021 ********************************

Maureen Burness sent in the sad news that we have lost Carol J. Pietraallo, 71, Colorado Springs, who worked in CX03.  Carol graduated from the University of Southern Colorado with a Bachelor's Degree in Social Work in 2000. Carol truly loved helping people.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 6, 2021 ********************************

 

Condolences to John Ratay and other friends of Richard L. Pfender, 68, Pittsburgh PA, who died suddenly on November 6, 2021.  John says he and Rich both started at Digital on November 5, 1973.  They worked together at the Charleston WV Service Center before Rich transferred to PGH.  Link to full obituary.

************************** October 31, 2021 ********************************

David Toub reported that his Digital Business & Office Systems colleague Wade Culberson, 79, passed away in the Atlanta GA area.  Mr. Culberson proudly served his country in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War. Wade retired from Hewlett Packard as the director of international logistics.  Our condolences to Wade's many Digital friends.

 

Link to full obituary.

 

 

************************** September 28, 2021 ********************************

Thanks to Eric Monk of the U.K. for notifying us about the passing of Raymond P. Lamy, 73, of Bedford NH.  Ray was a successful Safety Engineer at DEC Nashua and built professional connections with DEC European Product Safety Laboratory (EPSL) in Reading UK.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 14, 2021 ********************************

Condolences to Mary Collins and other friends of Madeleine Kenn, 70, who passed away on 14 Sept in Velva ND.  Madeleine, who worked at DEC WFO (Westfield MA) circa 1974-1977, kept in touch with Mary every couple months for many years after their shared DEC experience. 

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 13, 2021 ********************************

 

Thanks to Gay Choate Keilty for informing us of the passing of her friend, Henry Burl Bone, Maryville TN, on 13 Sept. Henry began working for DEC in 1981. He was a support engineer in Publishing and Broadcasting Services (PBS) at MKO. Henry retired from the company in the late 1990s, working as a Problem Manager in UNIX Support Engineering Group (USEG) at ZK3. Our condolences to daughter Bernice Bone Ward and his other Digital friends. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 11, 2021 ********************************

Thanks to the CXO group for reporting the passing of Michael D. Leis, of Framingham MA.  Michael was tragically killed by a hit and run automobile. 

Maureen Burness wrote that Mike was one of the top technical contributors at DEC in the storage group for over twenty years, based first in Maynard and then Shrewsbury. Mike was a graduate of both bachelor’s and master’s degree programs at MIT, and he worked as an electrical engineer for more than forty years at Digital Equipment Corporation, Quantum, Maxtor, and then Seagate, where his specialty was designing hard drives and managing teams of innovators. Michael held more than thirty original patents in hard drive technology. He made significant contributions to magnetic tape technology and did groundbreaking work in video terminals. His colleagues describe him as “the engineer’s engineer!” Prior to that, he worked at Draper Laboratories, where one of his greatest accomplishments was his work on the guidance system of the original Apollo 11 program.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 7, 2021 ********************************

Condolences to the CXO group on the loss of their friend Ruth Ellen Daugherty, 74, of Colorado Springs.  Ruth worked for Digital Equipment Corporation and retired after 30 years and 3 company turnovers, going from Digital to Compaq to Quantum to Hewlett Packard. Ruth is known for her loving, generous and kind heart. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** August 5, 2021 ********************************

Sue Hunt just wrote in with very sad news: Digital friends, we lost a caring and true gentlemen on August 5; Bill Demmer. I was fortunate to be Bill's Executive Assistant from 1985 to 1995 when he retired.  Bill will be missed by all those who interacted with him.  Rest in peace, Bill.

 

William Roy Demmer, 87, of Bonita Springs, FL died unexpectedly in his sleep on Thursday, August 5, 2021 at his residence. Bill was born on September 30, 1933 in Newark, NJ. He had been a resident of Bonita Springs since November of 1993, coming from Concord, MA. Bill was a graduate of Columbia High School in Maplewood, NJ and received his Bachelor of Science degree from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Right after graduating college, Bill began his career in the computer industry with IBM. As an electrical engineer he helped in the design of the first mainframe computer, IBM System/360. He would spend 18 years with IBM and in 1974 he joined Digital Equipment Corporation where he led the development of the revolutionary VAX/VMS computer system which was one of the first distributed mini computers created. He retired in 1995 as their Executive Vice President. Since retirement Bill has sat on multiple Board of Directors through 2020.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** August 2, 2021 ********************************

Cheryl Rawden sent sad news of the passing of Dan (Daniel T.) Smith, of Jacksonville FL, at the age of 75, from COVID-19.  Cheryl said that Dan was a manager of the Providence, RI DEC office as far back as the 80s. He had worked as a Consulting Manager for Digital Equipment Corporation / Compaq / Hewlett Packard for twenty-five years. 

Link to full obituary,  

 

************************** July 31, 2021 ********************************

We've learned that, sadly, Pong Ok Chon, 70, Colorado Springs, has died. Pong worked in CXO Storage Manufacturing.  Our condolences to his family and friends.

 

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** July 13, 2021 ********************************

We are sad to learn of the passing of another Colorado Springs alumnus, Donald Stafford, 88.  He was born in Massachusetts in 1933 where he lived until joining the Naval Air Reserve in May 1951. He was sworn into the Air Force in March 1952 where he obtained his Associates degree and became an aircraft mechanic.After he retired from the Air Force, Don worked as a machine shop supervisor at Digital Equipment Corporation, then after retiring from there he worked in two local machine shops, and also repaired equipment for a local hospital.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 24, 2021 ********************************

Bob Collins sent us sad news about his friend Mel Arsenault. Melvin Arsenault, 86, of Gloucester, Mass., died peacefully on June 24, 2021. Mel was a graduate of Lexington High School and Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston where he received an Engineering Degree. He proudly served in the U.S. Navy as a Sonar Man aboard the USS Fred T. Berry.
Mel had a long, distinguished career at Digital Equipment. He was very proud to be the 33rd employee hired at DEC. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 18, 2021 ********************************

Thanks to Sue Lawrence-Longo for reporting the unexpected passing of David N. Adoretti, 72, of Sterling MA.  Sue worked with Dave, who was nicknamed Red Eye, in Westminster manufacturing.  Dave had proudly served his country in the United States Army during the Vietnam War where he was awarded the Vietnam Service Medal with 4 Bronze Service Stars and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry with Palm. Upon his return he earned his associates degree and began a long career in the computer industry. He was a respected leader at several local companies including Photo Panels of New England, Vox 2, Sun Microsystems, and Digital Equipment. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 16, 2021 ********************************

We are sad to announce the passing of James Isaac Welch, 81, Colorado Springs.  Jim was an alumni of the CXO Security Department (3rd Shift). Our sincere condolences to his wife, To Yon Welch, CXO Manufacturing, children, and friends. After high school, Jim enlisted in the Army and became a Military Policeman. A Vietnam Veteran, he served 21 years before he retired in 1980 at Ft. Carson. Jim was awarded many military medals. Then he had rewarding careers and retired from Digital/HP and the D.O.C.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 15, 2021 ********************************

Galen Davis sent in sad news of the passing of Rio Rita York, 89, Peoria AZ:

We've lost another long-term DEC Arizona Alumni and retiree. 

A long and fruitful life. Rest in Peace and God Bless, Rita York.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 9, 2021 ********************************

Our sincere condolences to Richie Lary and the many Storage and other Digital friends who worked with Ellen Jane (Schauer) Lary, 80, Colorado Springs, on her unexpected passing. Ellen graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in Education and spent several years as a teacher in Philadelphia and Syracuse as a young mother of two. When her first marriage ended, she decided to pursue an advanced degree in engineering at a time when that was not a career path pursued by many women. She earned a PhD in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research from Syracuse University, specializing in computer databases, all the while raising her two children as a divorced, single woman. She was employed as a researcher by Bell Laboratories in Holmdel NJ, then moved to Colorado Springs in 1981 to lead an Advanced Database Development group at Digital Equipment Corporation, where she met her husband, Richard. She discovered she had a knack for engineering and business management, in time rising to become Vice President of Digital's Storage Division, responsible for 700 employees, and growing business revenue from $1.2 billion per year to $1.8 billion per year in an 18-month period. She continued as a Vice President at Compaq Computer Corporation, which acquired Digital, for one year before leaving to become an industry consultant in the computer storage industry. All the while, she remained closely connected to her children and grandchildren. Celebration of Life to be held Sat., August 14, 1 pm, Antler's Hotel.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 4, 2021 ********************************

We are saddened to learn from Len Segal of the passing of DEC Connection member Karen Weeks Hamilton, 81, of Clinton MA.  Karen worked at Digital-CPQ as an administrative secretary from 1976-2003.  She attended all our events and always helped out with a smile.  Karen will be greatly missed.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 2, 2021 ********************************

Galen Davis reported the passing of Paul McGaunn, 83, of N Andover and Lowell MA. Paul became employee number 671 at Digital Equipment Corporation in Maynard, MA, where he began working in the stockroom. He eventually became the Manufacturing Manager at Digital's Galway, Ireland facility, from 1971-1973. Upon returning to the US, he managed the Westfield, MA manufacturing facility for Digital until 1985, and eventually retired in 1993 as the company's Corporate Quality Manager. Paul was a sought after resource on quality control and manufacturing processes, speaking throughout Digital locations in the US, Europe and Asia, as well as Harvard University. He became a self-employed ISO 9000 quality control consultant for three years, until joining Riverdale Mills Corporation in Northbridge MA as Vice President of Manufacturing, a role that he retired from in 1997.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 30, 2021 ********************************

Thanks to Leslie Braswell for sending in news of the unexpected passing of Melissa R. Johns, 56, of Colorado Springs.   Leslie writes:

Melissa was a long-time member of the DIRECTV Account Support Team and worked at the CXO3 facility as a Computer Operator and Technical Lead.  Melissa's passing leaves many friends and coworkers to grieve, along with her loving family.  We are so very sad to share this news.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 23, 2021 ********************************

Our sincere condolences to Storage folks, back East and in Colorado Springs, on the untimely passing of Steve Peters of Monument CO at age 62. Member Ron Ginger sent in the sad news.  Steven worked in the computer industry for Digital Equipment Corporation, Compaq Computer Corporation, Hewlett Packard Corporation, PMC-Sierra, LSI Corporation and, most recently, Seagate Technology. He was the recipient of multiple patents and helped write the Storage Management Initiative Specification.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 11, 2021 ********************************

 

Our sincere condolences to DEC Connection member Giorgio Corsi and others in DEC Europe at the passing of their friend Michael Ewing.

Giorgio writes: Gill Ewing (Michael’s wife) just informed me that Michael, on May 11th, passed away after a rather long sickness. The funeral will take place on June 14th and as soon as I have further news I will let you know. Michael had been an inspiring leader for the European HRO function, he was the first to bring to us the Organizational concepts and was full of new and brilliant ideas. He helped many of us to grow and was full of suggestions that I personally used a lot (and am still using). After he left Digital he and I stayed in touch and was meeting regularly with our wives, I discovered a new Michael full of humor and extremely friendly.  He will be always in my heart as a great man and an inspiring leader.  Ciao Michael : riposa in pace Giorgio.corsi@wanadoo.fr

 

************************** April 23, 2021 ********************************

Galen Davis, organizer for the DEC AZ club, writes: With sadness we learned of the passing of Dave Richards.  After a very lengthy battle with complicated health challenges, Dave passed on Friday April 23.  He was surrounded by wife Blue (also a DEC alumni), his children and grandchildren. Good friend and long term DEC IT Manager from 1977-2003 at DEC Union Hills.  RIP Dave.  May God bless him!  

 

************************** April 20, 2021 ********************************

Thanks to Carolyn Abbott for reporting the sad news about Ted (Edmund H.) Damon's passing.  Ted, of Gardner MA, was just 61 years old when he succumbed to a long illness.  Ted held a BS from University of MA in Lowell and worked for Digital Equipment at the beginning of his career (late 70s-early 80s), and in IT at Leominster Hospital later. His interests ranged from ham radio to Star Trek.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** April 14, 2021 ********************************

 

My father, (Charles) Lee Mauldin, 76, Colorado Springs, passed away due to complications from prostate cancer on April 14, 2021. He fought hard from his initial diagnosis in early 2018 and I’m glad that he is at peace. I know that my father was a good friend and colleague to some of you on this email chain and I wanted to be able to let everyone know that had a relationship with him.  Dad was able to retire fairly early in life and loved to travel abroad, especially to Germany and Japan.I always admired his sense of humor and drive to excel. It seemed he never gave up on a problem until it was solved. I truly believe this was what kept him in good spirits and focused over the last few years. Please feel free to reach out to me at mikemauldin01@hotmail.com should you want to contact me. I would love and encourage anyone to reach out if you knew my dad and wanted to share a story or say hi.

 

************************** April 14, 2021 ********************************

Sadly, the Colorado Springs folks have lost another former co-worker and friend. David Michael Versace, 71, passed away April 14 at his residence in Colorado Springs, Colorado.  A memorial service is planned for the summer of 2021.In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Dave's name to St. Jude’s Children's Hospital and the American Cancer Society.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** April 10, 2021 ********************************

 

Condolences to the CXO group on the loss of their friend Bill McPhillips, 88, of Colorado Springs, after suffering a stroke in early April.  Bill worked at Digital CXO as a Manufacturing Engineer from 1984 until 1992.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 25, 2021 ********************************

Sincere condolences to friends of David N. Streeter, 77, of Quechee VT, who passed away recently.  Much of Dave's career was spent working for Digital Equipment Corp with their Real Estate and Development Group. He played a significant leadership role in the massive real estate expansion for the company in the 1980sLink to full obituary.

 

************************** March 12, 2021 ********************************

Sincere condolences to Joyce DeVivo and family who wrote: I'm sorry to have to inform you that my husband Paul DeVivo, 79, of Grand Gorge, NY is no longer with us, as he passed away on March 12.  Our whole family was much blessed by his being part of Digital all those years and by friendships made there.  At DEC he was happily employed for 16 years.  One of his achievements was the creation of the Employee Locater File, the first computerized list of their worldwide employees. After early retirement from DEC, Paul became an independent consultant working on Y2K projects.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 8, 2021 ********************************

Condolences to Dick Kessler, Ben Daniel and other friends of Dawn Gilbert, 74, Santa Rosa CA, who passed away on March 8.  Dawn worked at National Cash Register (NCR) in 1968 in Columbus OH, followed by Xerox in 1971 in Denver CO and later spent time at Digital Equipment Corp. (DEC) in Boston, MA and Compaq in Houston, TX where she retired from and immediately moved to Austin, TX. Dawn’s career took her around the U.S. and left a lasting impact in the technology industry. Link to full obituary.

 

A virtual Celebration of Life will be August 22, 2021, 3 pm Pacific Time, at this link:  Join Zoom Meeting: https://washington.zoom.us/j/92658813885

Meeting ID: 926 5881 3885

 

************************** February 26, 2021 ********************************

Our condolences to CXO friends of Phyllis M. DeAngelo, 84, Colorado Springs on her passing.  Phyllis worked in CXO2 and retired from DEC. 

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** February 17, 2021 ********************************

Condolences to the CXO folks on the loss of their friend Louis Gonzales Jr., age 86, who passed away peacefully on February 17, 2021, five weeks after his beloved wife, Ursula, had passed away.  Lou served a distinguished army military career including combat in Vietnam, but after retiring there, he worked at Ford Aerospace, Digital, and Raytheon for over 20 years.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 30, 2021 ********************************

DEC Connection member (Francis P.) Frank Brown, 74, Amherst NH, passed away recently and unexpectedly on Jan. 30. Frank graduated Tufts University with a B.S. in Mathematics in 1968, and earned his Masters in Business Administration from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College in 1976. Frank went on to a long and successful career in the "emerging world of computers," starting with Digital Corp., continuing on with Compaq and finally retiring with Hewlett Packard.   Frank worked in Finance, Sales, Marketing, BOIS at Digital. His friend Paul Brock said Frank left his wife Nancy, two sons and two daughters, and four grandchildren. Worked in sales and sales management in NJ, was regional sales VP for Asia, managed the VMWare relationship, and led the Alpha porting team. Loved golf and skiing.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 30, 2021 ********************************

DEC Connection member (Octavio L.) Tavo Diaz, 72, Stow MA, passed away on Jan 30, 2021 after a long battle with Alzheimer's Disease.  Our sincere condolences to his wife Lisa and many Digital friends.  Tavo worked in Sales/GIA/ Field Service in the US and in Mexico.  Link to memorial page.

 

************************** January 28, 2021 ********************************

Our condolences to Ted Sares and other friends on the passing of Kevin J. Sullivan, 79, Palo Alto CA, from Covid-19.  Kevin had a distinguished career in Human Resources (HR), from Pitney-Bowes in Stamford CT to Raytheon in Waltham MA to Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in Maynard, MA and then in 1987 to Apple Computer in Cupertino, CA.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 24, 2021 ********************************

 

Thanks, and our condolences, to John McClelland and other friends for reporting sad news of the passing of (Richard Harry) Dick Stevenson, 77, Woodland Park CO. After Dick’s military duty ended in 1968, he put his computer background to work and joined Digital Computer Corporation.  Dick finished his work in the computer industry in 1994, retiring to the Woodland Park area. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 20, 2021 ********************************

Our sincere condolences to Anker Berg-Sonne and other friends of Bill Clark, 78, Chelmsford MA, who passed away in January. Bill Clark joined the product line selling mini computers to Education in the mid-70s. In 1983 Bill was promoted to manager of the EDU Technical Support group and later moved to the State and Local Government Group and eventually the Networking Group before leaving Digital. Bill was instrumental in forging close friendships between the members of the EDU Technical Support Group lasting to this day even though the members have been spread far and wide. Sadly, Bill was diagnosed with advanced cancer just after Christmas 2020 and quickly succumbed to the disease at age 78.

 

************************** January 14, 2021 ********************************

Thanks to John Gray for informing us of the passing of Geoff Shingles, 81, England UK. Geoff was a former CEO of Digital U.K.

Though Geoff was largely involved in the company in the U.K. and Europe during his thirty year career with Digital, he worked with Andy Knowles for some years in America, and was well known to many throughout the Corporation. After leaving the company in the mid 1990s, Geoff had several business interests, most notably as Executive Chairman of Imagination Technologies, a significant technology company. Geoff was widely respected in the U.K. business community, and was hugely regarded by all in Digital U.K. He joined the company at a relatively young age in the 1960s, and rose rapidly to the most senior positions - he was very much the epitome of what made Digital such a wonderful place to be. 

The early part of Geoff's career was with Digital Equipment Co. Limited. He held board level positions from 1968 and was Corporate Vice President for European operations, subsequently managing Digital’s business in 13 European countries. From 1983 until 1993 he was Chief Executive and Chairman of Digital Equipment Co. Limited, an organisation with a turnover in excess of £1billion.

In 1987, after more than a quarter of a century in the IT industry, Geoff Shingles was awarded the CBE for Services to Information Technology. He is recognised as one of its founders.

 

************************* January 8, 2021 ********************************

Rich Dischler sent in an obit for friend Jill M. (Kaufman) McPhee, 66, of Hopkinton and Harvard MA. Jill was born in Pittsburgh, PA, grew up in France and Parsippany, NJ. In 1975, she earned her bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, followed by a master’s degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. During her career, Jill worked as a nuclear engineer at Brookhaven Laboratory, a computer engineer at Digital and Compaq, and a submarine sonar technician for the U.S. Navy.   Rich adds that Jill did thermal design work for the VAX9000 program in Marlboro MA.    Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 7, 2021 ********************************

We are saddened to learn of the loss of DEC Connection member, Ellen Lee Simarano, 80, Concord MA. Ellen died peacefully on Thursday, January 7, 2021 at Care Dimensions Hospice House in Lincoln, MA after a short battle with lung cancer. Ellen was employed at Digital Equipment Corporation, where she worked in Marketing in both the Maynard and Marlboro facilities. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 5, 2021 ********************************

Our condolences to Marty Palmieri, Bill Gordon, and other former colleagues and friends of George H. Newton, 80, Framingham MA, who passed away on Jan. 5. George proudly spent his career as an early pioneer of the computing industry, working alongside both his sister Connie and brother Dave at the Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). His enthusiasm for the field also led him to spend thirty years as an Adjunct Professor at Boston University, teaching low-level computer engineering fundamentals. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 2, 2021 ********************************

Thanks, and our condolences, to Brenda Bloomgren and other friends for reporting sad news of the passing of Susan Carol (Cavanaugh) George, 70, Riviera Beach FL.  Susan died peacefully on January 2, 2021, in her home, with her husband Dennis and son Matthew, after a prolonged illness with Multiple System Atrophy (MSA). After teaching, she started her corporate career at Mobil Oil in 1974.  She found her stride in the corporate world and achieved great success in senior roles in the Human Resources field. She went on to further her career at Educational Services, Digital Equipment, Bedford, MA,  Fidelity Investments, and Textron. 

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 28, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Marty Palmieri and other former colleagues of Howard A. Mayberry, 70, Cambridge MA. Howard grew up in San Jose, CA, where he graduated from UC Santa Cruz with one of the school's first degrees in Computer Engineering. Always cognizant of his New England roots, he returned to Bolton, MA, in the 1980's, and later moved to Cambridge, MA. He was proud of a lengthy career at both Digital Equipment Corporation and RSA Security.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 24, 2020 ********************************

Galen Davis sent in sad news of the passing of Ray Michel, 79, of Lowell MA:  Valued 40 year veteran of DEC and HP.  Co-worker and good friend. We remember the good times! RIP Ray Michel.   Ray was signed by the LA Dodgers upon high school graduation, playing for three years until he, "didn't know where my fast ball was going." He joined Digital Equipment Corporation as a stock boy following his release from baseball. He rose through the ranks becoming European Distribution Manager in Geneva, Switzerland and retired after 40 years as Corporate Manager of Logistics for Hewlett Packard.    Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 20, 2021 ********************************

We were saddened to learn of the passing of DEC Connection member and Digital retiree Eleanor T. (McGovern) Gadomski, 92, of Leominster and Clinton MA.  In addition to raising her family, Ellie was employed by the former Colonial Press in various positions. She served as a companion to the elderly for three years, and later pursued a career in electronics at Sprague Electric and Digital Equipment Corporation in semi-conductor manufacturing, retiring in 1990.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 25, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to CXO friends of Rich (Richard A.) Sanchez.  He had a heart attack a couple of weeks ago and was in rehab when he had another heart attack, this one was fatal. Rich was really a nice guy and helped anywhere he was needed. Always with a smile. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 25, 2020 ********************************

David J. Gibson, 64, died Wednesday following a very brief illness. A computer Technician, he had worked for Digital Equipment Corp., Hamilton Standard, Skyline Electronics, and XIO Tech in Colorado Springs. “He was called Hoot and Gibby and was such a kind soul.” He worked in the Disk Drives group and in the CXO1 downstairs Lab.  Link to full obituary.

************************** November 8, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to CXO friends of Richard (Dick) Timberlake III, who passed away, aged 74.  Dick had a successful career in Colorado Springs using his computer science skills. He taught computer languages and programming at Regis College for five years. He transitioned away from academia to work for information technology companies such as Digital, Compaq, and HP as a software engineer/analyst. Tragically, Dick lost his life from injuries from being struck by an automobile while on his way to join the Colorado Springs Cycling Club for a Sunday afternoon social ride.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 5, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to CXO friends of Jim (James Edward) Gaines, 78, who passed away due to COVID-19. A United States Army veteran and computer engineer, James enjoyed spending time with his family and hunting in Colorado.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 20, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to member Jerry Bernath and other friends of George "Ross" Kelly, Jr., of Cumming and Statesboro GA, who passed away on October 20 at the age of 74.  Ross graduated from Georgia Southern College in 1972.  After completing graduate school at the University of Georgia in 1974 his professional career was varied and accomplished, including sales at Digital. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 14, 2020 ********************************

Deborah McIntosh of Colorado Springs passed away at age 68 on October 14, 2020 from a very aggressive form of brain cancer.  No obituary is posted.

Our condolences to her friends.

 

************************** October 12, 2020 ********************************

Dick (DeWitt) Clinton, 78, Wells ME, financial executive and early American history enthusiast, passed away on October 12 due to cancer, at Gosnell Memorial Hospice in Scarborough, ME. Dick attended Williams College, where he received a BA in Mathematics in 1964. He earned his MBA in finance from the Columbia University Business School in 1970, and a certificate in executive education from INSEAD (Fontainebleau, France) in 1991. Dick joined Digital Equipment Corporation in 1970, where he built his career in financial management. After leaving Digital in 1996, Dick worked as a business development and finance consultant for numerous companies. He and his son, DeWitt, partnered on a software startup in the early 2000s. During this period, Dick was able to pursue his interests in the history of Colonial and Revolutionary-era America. As a direct descendent of former New York Governor DeWitt Clinton, he served on committees and boards of numerous historical organizations. The family suggests that donations be made to the St. David's Episcopal Church Memorial Garden, 138 York Street, Kennebunk, ME 04043. Link to full obituary. 

 

************************** October 7, 2020 ********************************

Prominent computer scientist John Adams, 79, of Andover and Lincoln, MA died on October 7, 2020, of Parkinson's Disease and Lewy Body Dementia. A direct descendant of John Adams and John Quincy Adams, he maintained strong ties to the Adams Historical Site in Quincy, often giving talks about important events in the Adams' lives.  John majored in Math at Harvard and then, by 1974, achieving Master's and PhD degrees in structural engineering from Tufts and MIT, respectively.  John was especially proud of his contributions bringing the pioneering Ethernet LAN technology to market while at Digital Equipment Corp. (1976-1996). He was a leading engineer and mentor to many at Digital. He later worked at RSA Security (1996-2001).  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 6, 2020 ********************************

 

Condolences to the CXO group on the loss of their friend Dennis Laurence, 75, Colorado Springs.  Habib Mirhossaini reports: "with sadness and sorrow, colleague and dear friend Dennis passed last week from being involved in a single-car accident.  Dennis was our EMI and Safety engineer for a very long time and was running the FCC site. I believe he retired about 7 to 8 years ago."

 

************************** October 3, 2020 ********************************

Dennis Reardon sent in the obit for Ken Fahle, 78, of Ayer MA Ken spent a majority of his career working in Human Resources, first for Anheuser-Busch, then for Digital Equipment Corporation, and later Fidelity Investments. Family and friends will gather to honor and remember Ken for a Graveside Service Friday, October 9, 2020 at 1:00 pm at Westlawn Cemetery, 7 New Estate Road, Littleton.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 30, 2020 ********************************

We are saddened to report the passing of Stanley C. Olsen, 92, Tierre Verde FL and Gilford NH.  Our condolences to Stan's wife Betty and their family, and to their many Digital friends. Stan was employee 3 of Digital, after his brother Ken and Harlan Anderson.  Stan was an eclectic entrepreneur and visionary, a pioneer in the computer business and, following his 25-year Digital career, a transformative real estate developer in Citrus County, Florida. Stan served on the boards of many companies and several colleges. He received honorary doctorate degrees from Saint Anselm College and Northeastern University. He didn't retire until 82 years old.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Community Food Bank of Citrus County, 5259 W. Cardinal Street, Building B, Homosassa, FL 34446, or the New Hampshire Food Bank, 700 East Industrial Park Drive, Manchester, NH 03109.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 8, 2020 ********************************

We are sad to report the passing of DEC Connection member Alice M. (Richardson) Stapelfeld, 93, of Northborough MA. She was a 1945 graduate of Brookfield H.S. and held various bookkeeping positions at area businesses, most recently at Digital Equipment Corporation, before she retired. Alice was passionate about volunteering, dedicating 37 years of service to the Northborough Senior Center. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 7, 2020 ********************************

Paul Thompson sent in the obituary for his friend Thomas R. Specht, 64, of Woodland Park CO. Tom was an engineer in the computer technology field for multiple firms throughout the United States including Apple, Digital, Cray Computer, and Luminous Networks. Tom was a mentor to fellow employees and inspired his colleagues to do their best.   Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 3, 2020 ********************************

Galen Davis sent the obituary for Bill Picott (William Cassell Picott III), 81, of Lakewood Ranch FL and Harwich Port MA, who passed away from complications of Covid-19.  Following a distinguished military career, Bill earned a Master of Science Degree in Management from Central Michigan University in 1974 and completed senior executive programs at Dartmouth’s Tuck Business School and MIT’s Sloan School in 1979 and 1990, respectively. Bill spent 37 years working in the information technology industry, most notably with Digital Equipment Corporation. In his inaugural position, he became the first person of color to lead DECUS, Digital Equipment Computer Users’ Society. He went on to manage the Terminals and Printing Engineering division. After 28 years with the company, Bill retired in 2003 as the Director of HP’s North American Technical Sales Support Call Center. Throughout his career, Bill championed the hiring and mentoring of numerous engineers of color through the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). He also represented Digital on the White House’s Committee for Science and Technology at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** August 28, 2020 ********************************

Condolences to the CXO team on the loss of their friend Norman Smith, 82, of Colorado Springs.  Digital was Norm's 2nd career, after 24 years in the military, and he retired as a District Manager in 1992.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** July 22, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to the DEC AZ team and other friends of Eisuke "Jim" Shiota, 78, of Sun City West AZ. Galen Davis writes:

Jim Shiota was an original start-up member of our AZ DEC family at W. Earll Drive and later Union Hills in 1974.  He greatly contributed to our early AZ production control and material processes. Always positive and enthusiastic Jim adapted instantly to our DEC culture. With few resources in 1974 Jim understood teamwork and how to make manufacturing schedules in this start-up role. Significant contributor, good friend, golf buddy and DEC AZ Alumni.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** July 19, 2020 ********************************

Sadly, we've learned of the passing of Frans Vandermolen, Sebring FL.  Frans was born in the Netherlands, and worked for Philips and Digital. He had worked in the tech support group for Education Computer Systems in the early 80s. In 1984, he graduated Harvard Business School. In 1988, he became a U.S. citizen and was then moved to California by Digital. In 1994, he got a degree from Canterbury University for master in science and in 1996 he became a doctor of science. While in California, he resigned from Digital and started his own company, Flying Dutchman Hyperbarics in 1990.  Frans moved to Florida in 1997. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** July 15, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to the many friends and admirers of Digital's Manufacturing VP Bill Hanson on his recent passing. In 1967, Bill and his wife Bette made the bold choice to leave warm and familiar California for snowy and foreign Massachusetts to join newly-started Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in Maynard. They settled in Acton. DEC is where Bill made his name. Initially given the responsibility of opening new plants in places as diverse as Puerto Rico and Scotland, Bill ultimately rose to lead global manufacturing. Bill’s signature initiative at DEC, however, was instilling a culture of diversity, which came to be known as “Valuing Differences”. Recognizing that the next great idea could come from anywhere or anyone, Bill then went on to form cross-industry alliances in an attempt to extend learning and knowledge.  

Ted Sares commented that Bill, in many ways, represented the very best of DEC.

Tom Colatosti: Bill was a quality man of character, caring and competency. 

Galen Davis from AZ commented: Bill Hanson was our Manufacturing VP

based in Maynard, MA.  We remember him as our "Founding Father" for many DEC Mfg facilities including our AZ Union Hills facility. You may have met him on our many plant reviews. Rumor has it an aerial view of Union Hills reveals the "H" building shape. Coincidence? Bill was a giant among DEC manufacturing leaders and responsible for Digital's growth in the industry. Pioneered new industry leading technologies like Just-In-Time, continuous flow mfg, financial systems, focused factories and people systems. Following DEC in 1996 he taught at the MIT Sloan School of Management. Great life and career... a DEC legend. 

 

************************** July 9, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to friends of Nora Peaslee (Fleming) McGuinness, 63, who passed away in July from cancer.  Nora handled marketing communications and marketing in the Services group in Stow MA during the DEC-Compaq and Compaq-HP transition period.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** June 15, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to all former Digital Ireland employees and many other friends of Mike Mulqueen, Limerick, founder of Digital Galway, Ireland. Liam Ferrie offered the following eulogy for Mike: I hope you feel as I do that we owe a deep debt of gratitude to Mike for the way he shaped Digital and the huge positive impact Digital had on our lives. As most of you know, Mike was the first Irish employee of Digital and held badge number 1. He was a member of the start-up team back in 1971 and, as Personnel Manager, had more responsibility than most for ensuring that the values and ethics of Ken Olsen, which already permeated the young Digital in the US, were successfully transferred to Ireland. He did that superbly well and helped create the work environment which so many of us look back on with great fondness. Like most of us Mike treasured the many friends he made in Digital and travelled from his home in Limerick on a number of occasions to be with us at the First Thursday coffee mornings in the Huntsman. I find it very sad that we will not enjoy his company there again. I would like to offer my sympathy to his sons, Billy and Michael, his grandchildren and the extended Mulqueen family. Ted Sares said: Mike was a close friend and he had a heart of pure gold. He made a difference.  Link to obituary.

 

************************** June 13, 2020 ********************************

 

Jerry Bernath and Barrie Hunter reported the passing of their friend Ray Schavone, 69, of Shrewsbury MA, following a heart attack at 3 am.  Jim Neil wrote: Ray worked for many years in GSG operations.

Ray grew up in Marlboro where he graduated HS in 1969 and lived in Northboro. After he retired from DEC in 1996 he started a business in Shrewsbury called Deja Brew, a successful entrepreneurial venture that he ran from 1997 to 2017. That business had 12 brew stations that could make 12 gallons of beer each. Ray taught people how to make beer, bottle it, and make labels on a PC, he sold all the supplies and did the brewing in his store. In 2017 he sold the business to a customer. Anyone at DIGITAL or anywhere else who knew Ray knew his smile and laugh from a mile away.

 

************************** June 7, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to friends of Sandra Faye Mosley, 79, of Colorado Springs. She had a long career in IT/Electronics; she worked and retired from Digital Equipment Corporation.  Link to full obituary.

************************** May 30, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Colorado Springs friends of Maria T. Pipal, 92, who passed away May 30. Maria was born on November 20, 1927 in Vencenzia, Italy to mother, Iolanda, and father, Augusto, and had 4 siblings. Maria met her husband, Stanley, in Vencenzia. After marriage, they moved to Colorado Springs, CO. After she retired from Digital, she volunteered for over 15 years at the Ronald McDonald House. Link to full obituary.

 

*************************** May 29, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to CXO friends of Theodore Wesley Murray, Jr., 72, Ashland VA, who passed away on May 29th. Ted specialized in Computer Technology working a total of 37 years within the Tech Industry (Digital Equipment /Compaq /Hewitt Packard /SAIC /BAE Systems) retiring as a Systems Engineer due to health issues.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 21, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Colorado Springs friends of Julia Ann Hypolite, 80.  Julia worked for Digital Equipment Corporation in CXO as a warehouse supervisor for 20 years, until her retirement in 1991.

************************** May 18, 2020 ********************************

Thanks to Tom Colatosti for sending notification of the untimely passing of Doug Hammond, 77, Laconia NH, from Covid-19 and Alzheimer's.  Doug had a distinguished military career as a pilot.  In the early 80s, Doug was recruited by Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment Corporation, to start a flight department for the company.  He ended up being Global Vice President of Administrative Services, which included the acquisition and disposition of Digital properties, worldwide.  Doug retired from Digital in 2000 when it got acquired; and moved up to Laconia, NH where he started another career at Channel Marine on Lake Winnipesaukee. 

 

************************** May 15, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to Clem Cole and other friends of Alfred (Al) Sidel, Chelmsford, Malden and Boston MA, who passed away on his 96th birthday from Covid-19.  Clem reports that Al built the HD fab, among other things.

A Navy Veteran and hero of WWII, Al graduated from University of Massachusetts, with a B.S. in Engineering; Careers at Raytheon and Digital Equipment Corp where he was one of countries’ first OSHA Certified, Safety Engineers; he served as President of the American Society of Safety Engineers, Boston Chapter. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 6, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to family and friends of James A. (Jim) Bennett, Jr., 83, of Falmouth and Millis MA, who passed away on 6 May.  His son Jim says that his father was very proud of his career at Digital, which spanned more than twenty years mostly at NRO in Northboro MA followed by service with DEC in Maryland.  He had many close relationships with DEC employees.  Son Jim can be reached at jdbennett76@gmail.com.

 

************************** April 30, 2020 ********************************

 

Member Joe Valof reports the passing of Jack Schweber, 83, of Hackensack NJ and south FL, after battling COVID-19.  During the last 20 years of Jack’s professional career, he worked as a senior account executive for Digital Equipment Corporation—which following two mergers became Compaq Computers and later, Hewlett Packard. There, Jack won several sales awards, weathered several corporate downsizings, and earned effusive praise from the clients he serviced.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** April 23, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Barbara (Coleman) Menefee and other friends of Glenn M. Rosander, 77, of Lancaster MA, who passed away on 23 April 2020.  Barb worked with Glenn in Tewksbury.  Glenn was an engineering manager. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** April 18, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to Gay Choate Keilty, Tom Hayden, John Donovan and other friends of Alex Hewitt, 71, of Manchester NH, who passed away on 18 April 2020. Alex worked for the company for many years as a software engineer, including the UNIX organization at ZKO.
 Link to full obituary.

 

************************** April 1, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Jack Savage and other friends and family of John Stephen "Jack" Cook, 80, of Tilghman MD, who passed away on April 1 due to complications from a stroke and pneumonia. Jack had a long career as a salesman working with government contracts supporting NOAA and NASA, including at Digital.
Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 26, 2020 ********************************

Marty Jack sadly reported the passing of Frank C. Hassett, 88, Nashua NH.  Frank was a very fine software engineering manager at ZKO, in operating systems.  His previous work at RCA was also praiseworthy.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 24, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to friends of Daniel A. Duefel, 67, of Bolton MA.  Dan worked in software support in Marlborough and various successor organizations for many years.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 23, 2020 ********************************

 

Our condolences to Ron Lamb and other friends of Roy W. "Jodie" Gray, 72, of Melrose MA. Roy was a licensed Insurance consultant working for Albert International Insurance Advisors before joining Digital's Risk Management group in 1978 thru June 28, 1998, continuing at Compaq and HP Financial Services, until he joined Harvard University's Risk Management group in the Fall of 2002 until his retirement.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 6, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to MaryEllen Kennedy and other friends/co-workers of Jim (James Charles) Albrycht, 81, East Sandwich MA. MaryEllen wrote:

I was reminded of the passing earlier this year of Jim Albrycht, who worked in Corporate Strategy and Architecture at the Virginia Road facility in the late 80s.  He pioneered remote access via a cable system back then.  Unfortunately, Digital didn't get behind it at the time. Now millions are depending on it, especially in these pandemic days.  At an offsite we had, I was fascinated to learn that he did video work on the Apollo space missions and he later gave a talk to the group on bringing computer displays to a Boston TV stations weather forecasts.  

Jim joined the USAF in 1958, to gain the technical education and experience he needed. While stationed in Savannah, GA, Jim met and married Carolyn (Dasher) Albrycht, his life companion and fellow traveler for 57 years. He used the GI bill upon discharge, in 1963, to continue his education at the Milwaukee School of Engineering. After graduating in 1965, he was eager to return south to join the space program. As part of the Apollo program, Jim began work for contractors RCA and later GE, at Kennedy Space Center, on the television engineering support team for Complex 39. Jim's family returned to New England in 1973, living and raising their children in Stow, MA. The new frontier for Jim, was cable television technology, networking broadband cable, with television and computer systems. Until 1997, he worked first for Wang Labs, then DEC. In 2005, they retired to the Cape.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 5, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to CXO friends of Michael Ohrmundt, 61, of Colorado Springs CO, who passed away on March 5, 2020, surrounded by his loving family, after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 4, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Susan Azibert and other friends of Albert Hsia, 80, who passed away recently in San Jose, CA.  Al worked in the Technical Languages group at DEC in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He married his wife, Pei, in 1981.  They eventually moved to San Jose, CA, where Al worked for IBM and Sun Microsystems.  Al was a kind, gentle and loving person.  Condolences can be left on the website for the Alameda Family Funeral and Cremation located in Saratoga, CA. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 19, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Star Dargin (www.starleadership.com) on the passing of her mom, Rosalie Caiger Sargent, 88, of Lunenburg, MA, who died on January 19, 2020. She was born February 27, 1932 in Concord, MA. She grew up in Concord, MA and received a degree from Lasell College. Rosalie (and two daughters) worked at Digital Equipment Corporation in Maynard, MA for decades. She took early retirement and pursued antiquing and life on a lake in Lunenburg, MA. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 17, 2020 ********************************

Bob Huntley wrote in with sad news about the passing of John F. Procopio, of Woburn MA and Naples FL, a long-time Digital, Compaq, and Hewlett Packard Finance Manager, on Jan. 17.

 

************************** January 16, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Kathie Larsen and other friends of Gail Matterson Vazal, 80, of Pocasset MA (formerly of Sudbury and Sandwich MA.), who passed away peacefully at home after battling gall bladder cancer for four years. She married Frank J. Vazal in 1961. Gail and Frank moved to Boston in 1962. In Boston Gail worked for CEIR. She retired from Digital Equipment Corp, where she was a Systems Analyst then became a Software Engineer.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 11, 2020 ********************************

 

Larry (Lawrence J.) Portner, age 83, 35-year resident of Naples, FL passed away peacefully on January 11, 2020.  He spent 20 years at Digital Equipment Corp. where he was the first to propose a 'help' command, eventually retiring as Senior Vice President.  Larry, vice president of software development, joined the company in 1963 as a programmer for the PDP-5. He later served as software development manager for the PDP-6. Larry was responsible for Software Distribution Center, Software Services Organization, Software Research Group and the Computational Services Group. He was a graduate of Temple University and had a BS degree in Business Administration.  After Digital, he worked with a number of companies including Apollo Computer, Data General Corp., Haht Software and Kronos, Inc.

 Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 8, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to Sandra MacKay and other friends of Atlee B. Caldwell, 78, Nashua NH, who passed away on January 8. For most of her career Atlee was employed with Digital Equipment Corporation where she was an Employment Manager. Her job at Digital brought her to Hudson, MA and later to Nashua, NH, where she started her own business, Heaven Sent Nannies.

Link to full obituary

 

************************** January 7, 2020 ********************************

 

William G. (Bill) Hovey, 68, of Merrimack NH, who worked at the Mill and Marlboro in the Drafting department passed away on 1/7/2020. Bill started with Digital in June 1969 after being a co-op employee and left in November 1991 as a Mechanical Design Supervisor.  Our condolences to his family via cousin george.hovey@hotmail.com  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 1, 2020 ********************************

Our condolences to ex-wife Judy Mandl and other friends of Edward J. Faryniarz, who passed away in Harwinton CT at the age of 62. Ed grew up in Southington CT and was a resident of Harwinton for several years. He furthered his education earning his bachelor’s degree at Clark University. At 6 feet 6 inches, he played on the university basketball team as number 42. He was employed as a computer consultant for Digital Equipment Corporation and later, Hewlett-Packard, together for 34 years.  Judy says that Ed's last assignment at HPE was tech support for the VA System.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 19, 2019 ********************************

We are sad to report that Kay Reilly wrote to us about the passing of her father, Edmund Joseph (Ed) Reilly, Jr., of Redmond WA, following a courageous battle with bladder cancer. Kay said that Ed loved his time with Digital and would love to be remembered. His contributions as an executive were extensive, including as President of Digital Equipment Corporation Japan & Asia territory. He also more recently served as President of the Japan America Society in Seattle. Link to full obituary here. Condolences to daughter Kay and family by email at kay.reilly@gmail.com.

 

************************** December 19, 2019 ********************************

We are greatly saddened to report the death of DEC Connection member Dave Denniston, 83, of Santa Barbara CA.  Dave unfortunately developed an aggressive and untreatable form of cancer. Dave worked in the Laboratory Data Products P/L among other assignments.  He lived in Santa Barbara for the last 30 years, where he was active in a charity he founded for developmentally disabled adults, and as a docent and educator in the Maritime Museum. santa_barbara_maritime_museum_mourns_loss_of_docent_dave_denniston

 

Here is a link to a touching memorial written by a friend.

 

************************** December 6, 2019 ********************************

Thanks to DEC Connection member Frank Ignachuck for informing us of the passing of his friend, Don (Donald M.) Miner.  Don was 87 at the time of his death and had lived in Framingham MA for 60 years.  He was employed for 17 years as a Regional Facilities Manager for the MRO cluster for Digital Equipment Corp. before retiring.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 21, 2019 ********************************

Condolences to the Colorado Springs group on the loss of their friend Barbara Jean Cusack, 66, to cancer. In Colorado Springs, Barbara got a job at Digital Equipment Corporation, where, despite not having a Computer Science degree, she worked her way up to becoming a Computer Software Specialist. She remained with the company for 30 years as it transitioned to Compaq, and then Hewlett Packard. While she was there, she forged many lifelong friendships.  Link to a beautiful obituary.

 

************************** November 11, 2019 ********************************

Condolences to the Colorado Springs group on the untimely loss of their friend Lawrene "Biscuit" Weaver, 60.  Upon graduating high school she relocated with her mother to Colorado Springs, CO. After arriving in Colorado she was employed with Digital for years. After transitioning from Digital she found her love and passion for children working as a para professional in the Colorado Springs School Districts.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** November 4, 2019 ********************************

Dawn Guite reported the death of Charlie Scheid, 60, Glastonbury CT, after long battle with CIPD. Charlie was an academic and an athlete; he attended Boston College on a full swimming scholarship. He went on to compete in the 1976 Olympic trials, and completed 13 Marathons. After finishing college with a degree in applied mathematics, he went on to live, work and travel to various places across the country. He would work for several companies, including Digital and AVAYA, for over 25 years. He was described by his many friends and co-workers as hard-working, honest and loyal. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 31, 2019 ********************************

Al Harrison is sad to report that Robert J. (Bob) Schmitt, Jr. passed away on October 31, 2019 in Buffalo, NY.  Bob worked in marketing and sales for IBM in New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia before coming to Buffalo as a sales manager in 1976. A friend encouraged him in 1978 to go to Digital Equipment Corp., where he became sales manager for the telecommunications industry, which included the company's biggest customer, AT&T. From 1986 to 1997, Bob served as Digital Equipment Corp.'s vice president of marketing for the Far East, based in Hong Kong; vice president of marketing for the U.S.; and as marketing vice president in Asia, based in Singapore. Bob ultimately became an expert in facial recognition technology, and started his own company, Biometrica. With a computer engineer colleague, he developed software in the basement of his home in Mont Vernon NH to compare photos of known cheaters with gamblers on live cameras in casinos. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 24, 2019 ********************************

We're sad to receive news from the Colorado Springs group of the passing of their co-worker, Steve Woestemeyer, 71. Steve was an IT consultant before retiring.

 

************************** October 31, 2019 ********************************

Our condolences to Digital friends of Jerry Avakian, 71, of Scottsdale AZ, who passed away recently. Jerry was an electrical engineer and project manager for Digital and Compaq specializing in facility development in MA, AZ and CA for 30 plus years before resigning to focus on the design and construction of Armenian Apostolic Church in Scottsdale.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 17, 2019 ********************************

Carolyn Abbott wrote that Louise H. Case, 72, of Gardner MA, who worked as a Financial Analyst for DEC, possibly at the Westminster plant, passed away on Oct. 17, 2019 from cancer. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 10, 2019 ********************************

 

With sadness we learned of the passing of John Harris, Jr., Suisun City CA from his daughter Nadine. John worked in the finance field for Compaq and Xerox Corporation for over 30 years, including at the Union Hills AZ facility. After retiring, John received credentials and degrees in Education, where he taught children in special education.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 6, 2019 ********************************

 

We are sad to learn from Galen Davis of our Arizona chapter of the passing of their friend Barbara Ell Richards, 83, Phoenix AZ, from Parkinson's in October. Barb had attended their April get-together but hadn't disclosed the severity of her illness. Galen said: We will miss her smile and positive attitude. She remained a good friend to many of us from DEC and our AZ Alumni. Condolences may be conveyed to daughter Trish Hines at trishhines79@gmail.com or 602 717-7138. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 5, 2019 ********************************

Sad news from Meg Moreau reports that her mom, DEC Connection member Mary Moreau, 90, Maynard, passed away on Oct 5.  Mary worked for DEC for many years and took the first early retirement program. She worked until she was 87 at other jobs, but loved her years at DEC and was still in contact with many folks at 90!  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** October 3, 2019 ********************************

 

We're sad to receive news from the Colorado Springs group of the passing of their co-worker, Steve Woestemeyer, 71. Steve was an IT consultant before retiring.

 

************************** Sept 27, 2019 ********************************

Jackie Awerman reported the passing of co-worker Howard Painter, 83, of Hudson MA.  Howie’s career spanned 35 years and several continents with management and leadership positions in the technology industry from its earliest days. He was a fiercely proud Digital Equipment Corporation alum, starting the first PDP field sales office in Tokyo in the 1960s, and had worked in Phoenix manufacturing Link to full obituary.

 

************************** September 6, 2019 ********************************

Member Jodi Newell sadly reported the passing of her friend Stuart (Stu) McLeod Covey, 94, Maynard MA.  Jodi says: My entire 19 years at DEC were spent in Southern California but I traveled to Maynard, Nashua and Merrimack often. Stu was an expert on The Mill and gave me an awesome tour of all levels of the buildings back in the 1980s, telling me fun and interesting stories along the way. He and his wife Del always offered their home on Woodridge Street in Maynard for me to stay instead of a hotel and I sometimes spent vacation days with them. Stu and wife Del Covey were real gems.    Link to full obituary.

 

************************** August 28, 2019 ********************************

 

The Colorado Springs group reports the passing of their friend and co-worker, Johnny "Jay" Inman, 69.  Jay was a videographer at Digital Equipment.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** July 2, 2019 ********************************

 

The Colorado Springs group wrote of the passing of their friend and co-worker, Patricia (Patty) Ann Upton, 65, of Colorado Springs CO.  Patty worked in the CXO1 Engineering Department and was one of the originals of the DEC Fountain Plant. Patty was employed at Digital/Compaq/Hewlett Packard for over 39 years and enjoyed performing engineering activities on multiple projects over the duration of her employment. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 28, 2019 ********************************

 

 We are sorry to inform you of the passing of Greg Kenoyer, 65, of Colorado Springs.  He was a long time employee with Digital/Compaq/HP/HPE/DXC before going on LTD after being diagnosed with ALS.  He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 24, 2019 ********************************

 

His daughter Nichola wrote to inform us of the death of DEC Connection member William (Bill) Meserve, 79, Nashua NH.  Bill enjoyed a 20+ year career at the Digital Equipment Corporation as a computer programmer and software engineer, first in southern CA, then in NH and MA. Nichola can be reached at nmeserve@gmail.com  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** May 23, 2019 ********************************

 

Condolences to our Colorado Springs group on the loss of their friend Leo White.  From his friend and colleague, Jack Hunter: Leo was a good man.  He was vibrant and intelligent in his prime and a consummate professional at his work.  Janet LaPlante also wrote in to say that Leo was a friend she met in Dec. 1984 before he left for Geneva, and he will be missed.   

 

************************** May 11, 2019 ********************************

Will Sherwood sent us notice of the passing of Walker Anderson VI, 60, of Holliston MA on May 11, 2019.  Walker Anderson was a manager and Consulting Engineer in HLO Hudson Digital Semiconductor Design Verification group in the 1980s.   Link to full obituary here.

 

************************** May 7, 2019 ********************************

Galen Davis reports sad news that Al Gordon, 99, has passed away in Arizona:  with sadness we say goodbye to our long time DEC friend Al Gordon. He passed 5/7/2019 at 99. He joins his wife Joy in the hereafter. His two sons Al and Les were by his side in managed care in Peoria, AZ.  (We were looking forward to his 100th in September but it wasn't in the cards.)

Al was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and joined the RAF (Royal Air Force) from School as an early pilot and later technical adviser. As an RAF spotter he landed on Normandy Beach day-1 and survived the invasion of June 6,1944.  Following the war he moved his family to Vancouver Canada then California.  Joined DEC Manufacturing with others from Beckman Instruments in the 70's. Al held manufacturing positions with DEC Europe, Puerto Rico and Phoenix, AZ.  His family plans cremation with no formal announcement to date.

Al was a regular guest at our semi-annual DEC Arizona Alumni lunches, and we'll miss him. He enjoyed a long and successful career and life. May God Bless him as he now joins his wife Joy.

 

************************** April 30, 2019 ********************************

Pat Molloy reports sad news that (Robert G.) Rob Ayres, 73, of Concord MA, has passed away.  Do read his full obituary, a work of genius possibly written by Rob's wife Demi  ...No stranger to hard work, Rob started his career at age 12 as a paperboy in Wallingford, CT ultimately becoming a Vice President of Services at Digital Equipment Corporation where he was a champion of women's careers before it was fashionable...

 

************************** April 30, 2019 ********************************

Member Frank Ignachuck wrote in with sad news of the passing of his friend Jay (James P.) Sullivan, Jr. 70, of Marlborough MA.  Jay was a long time field service engineer for the In House Field Service Branch in the Mill.   Link to full obituary

 

************************** April 26, 2019 ********************************

 

DEC Connection member Galen Davis reports sad news that (Robert) Bob Difazio, 85, of Moultonborough NH, has passed away. Bob was raised and educated in Arlington MA. (No info about Digital career.)

Link to full obituary

 

************************** April 26, 2019 ********************************

Member Ian Ferguson reports that Gilles Marin, 71, Longueuil (Montreal) Quebec, Canada has passed away: Gilles was the first person I worked with when I joined DEC in SWS in Montreal. He was the big Typeset guru for our unique product and later District Manager...a great guy.

 

************************** April 19, 2019 ********************************

Member Dennis Reardon wrote in that Alan S. Anderson, 72, reached the end of his brave battle with cancer at home in Scottsdale, AZ the evening of April 19, 2019. Alan first trained as a minister but left for challenges in corporate America and spent 20 years with high tech companies - Digital Equipment Corporation, SAP, and ASML, primarily in the Boston area, Atlanta, and Tempe, and finally in The Netherlands, specializing in International Human Resources.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** April 7, 2019 ********************************

DEC Connection member Ted Sares reports sad news that Walter Chaffin, 70, of Houston TX has passed away.   Walt's career was in Human Resources and while at Digital he and family lived in Harvard MA.  

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** April 6, 2019 ********************************

 

Laura Woodburn sent in sad news that David Hartzband of Jamaica Plain died suddenly on April 6.  In the 80’s, David was an architect for DEC’s Rdb database product, now owned by Oracle. Years later he joined several startups bought out by other companies, before spending the last 15+ years doing product development and research in healthcare information technology. A tribute to David posted by the RCHN Community Health Foundation can be found here: https://www.rchnfoundation.org/?page_id=409
DEC colleagues recall David as ‘an exceptionally interesting guy’.   His experiences and spheres of interest both within and beyond technology were wildly diverse. He played football for Syracuse, served as a Navy SEAL commander in Vietnam, taught at Stanford and MIT, lived briefly on a Portuguese shipping vessel, knew plenty about the arts and design. Yet above all, David was a man whose brilliance was matched only by his gentleness and his deep interest in others. He will be missed.

 

************************** April 6, 2019 ********************************

 

Ray Humphrey wrote of the death of John J. Kulik of Maynard:

I’m saddened to convey the news about John Kulik’s passing. John was a tremendous individual and personified that ideal of a truly decent, honorable, hardworking, ethical, caring, individual. His moral compass and commitment to excellence in every endeavor distinguished him with the Massachusetts State Police and Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). Both organizations were indeed fortunate to have John as part of their senior management teams. To me, along with many other great traits, he was  somebody I could always look to for that great combination of intellect, judgment, and “street smarts.” A tremendous synergy.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 30, 2019 ********************************

Friend Richard Tucker wrote: Sadly, I learned that a colleague from Digital’s Personal Computer Business Unit, Dan Vertrees, 69, of Houston TX, passed away 3/30/19 following a 2-year battle vs. cancer. Dan started his career at Burroughs Corporation as a marketing representative. He worked his way up  and retired from Hewlett Packard as Vice President and General Manager for North America, Enterprise Channels & Alliances. After retirement, he resumed his early career in commercial real estate and truly enjoyed working hard to make his clients happy. A link to his obituary follows: Link to full obituary.

 

************************** March 28, 2019 ********************************

 

Member Pat Molloy wrote: I am sorry to report the passing of Don Smith.  He moved from Australia to the US to marry his wonderful wife, Mary Ann (Harrall) Smith who is also an ex-Digit, as they say in Australia.  He came to work for DEC in the early 90’s, in the General International Area, doing project management on some very complex customer accounts in Asia, Australia and India.  He and Mary returned to Australia to live 20 years ago, settling in Batehaven on Bateman’s Bay in New South Wales.  As so many have, he suffered from dementia for the past few years and passed away on March 28th.  He is missed.

 

************************** March 27, 2019 ********************************

 

We are saddened to receive news of the passing of Bill (William A.) DeSimone, 76, Gloucester MA from his sister-in-law Suzanne Soules, who says that Bill loved being part of DEC from the late sixties or early seventies right on through all the corporate transitions to his retirement. Bill was in the LDP Product Line, among others. Condolences may be emailed to Suzanne and Bill's wife at suzanne.soules@gmail.com. Link to full obituary.

 

 

************************** March 11, 2019 ********************************

Member Conray Wharff reported the passing of friend and colleague Helen Jane (Shalansky) Krysieniel, 87, of Acton MA.  She passed away on March 11, 2019 in Cape Coral, FL after a brief illness. Helen worked for 12 years as a receptionist at Digital Equipment Corporation, Acton MA.  Link to obituary.

 

************************** March 5, 2019 ********************************

Member Ed LoTurco reported the passing of his special friend and colleague at DEC, Jarvis ("J") D. Bailey, age 73, of Methuen, MA on March 5, 2019.  Link to obituary.

 

************************** March 4, 2019 ********************************

mailto:lindamoncrief@yahoo.com?subject=Cary D. Wyman

My husband, Cary D. Wyman, was a software engineer at DEC in the 1970’s. 
Unfortunately he died in 2019. I’d like to connect with any of his colleagues 
and discuss the projects he worked on.   lindamoncrief@yahoo.com

Cary Douglas Wyman, 77, passed away on March 4, 2019, in Austin, Texas.

He was born on Aug. 24, 1941, in Nashua NH.  He was primarily raised in Keene where he lived with his siblings, David Wyman and Martha Wyman. He had resided in Austin, Texas for the last 16 years of his retirement. Cary loved his cats, programming, debating over politics, study of maps, and his family. He had a vast collection of literature from all different genres and eras and enjoyed sharing his love for literature with his family. Cary is survived by his wife, Linda Moncrief.

 

************************** March 2, 2019 ********************************

Member Dennis Reardon wrote to report: Gunter Lenhoff, 79, passed away in Henderson, Nevada in March 2019.  I worked with Gunter in Hudson, Merrimack and Marlboro with TOEM and BCG in the early 80’s. 

Link to obituary.

 

************************** February 8, 2019 ********************************

We are saddened to report the passing of William P. (Bill or "Pipe") Keating, 88, Concord MA, on 8 February 2019. Bill was Vice President of the Software Development Technologies Group. He worked at DEC for fifteen years, retiring in 1992. Condolences may be emailed to Bill's daughter Kathleen Keating at kathiesart@gmail.com.  Kathie wrote that Bill

was very fond of Mr. Olsen and always saddened by his own prediction of what would and did happen to DEC down the line. He loved DEC.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 30, 2019 ********************************

Harlan E. Anderson of New Canaan, CT died on January 30th at age 89.

Anderson was an early computer pioneer and innovator who co-founded the first minicomputer company, Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), which, at its peak, grew into the second largest computer company in the world.

Following his years at DEC, Anderson served in the late 1960's as Director of Technology for Time, Inc.  He went on to have a career in small-scale venture capital for technology start-ups, serving on many industry and corporate boards. Link to full obituary.

 

 

************************** January 25, 2019 ********************************

 

Barrie Hunter forwarded sad news about the passing of John Sherwood Brown, 76, friend and co-worker from Glebe, NSW, Australia in Digital's South Pacific Region.  John is survived by Joanne (his partner), Sebastian (her son), his son Gavin, son Mitchell, daughter Danna, and sister Robyn.

Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 24, 2019 ********************************

 

Jim Higgins wrote to share: Sad news received today. Ceil Higgins relayed that her husband (Jeff) Dave Higgins passed away Thursday in Omaha after a long bout with Alzheimer's. Dave brought me into DEC in the education group in LCG in 1977. He had a sterling record in Sales and Sales Management in CA and NM. Jeff David Higgins "outPealed" Norman Vincent. He was the most optimistic person I ever met, as well as the most supportive and the best manager I ever had. We have remained good friends since we first met; although we communicated infrequently, when we did it was always an uplifting experience. He had a wonderful family and a great career. Dave's passing leaves a big hole. Rest In Peace, my good friend.  Full obituary when available.

 

************************** January 21, 2019 ********************************

 

Judy Kilgore sent in this obituary for Peter John Wilson Lamb, 60, of Dania Beach FL and Annapolis MD, who died unexpectedly on January 21, 2019. Upon graduation from Lynchburg College, Peter embarked on what would become a 37-year career supporting our nation's defense industry with the highest-level computer technology. Beginning with Digital Equipment, he navigated a succession of corporate mergers and ultimately was paid by Compaq, Hewlett-Packard and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise. He retired in October 2017 after leading a team that supported the National Reconnaissance Organization. Link to full obituary.

 

************************** January 6, 2019 ********************************

 

 

Judy Kilgore shared this memory of Mary Riffelmacher, 72, who had worked in the CXO Engineering Reprographics Department within Document Control with Lawrene Weaver, Lynn Proctor and herself. Some may remember Mary as the Easter Chicken when she wore a costume for fun (left photo below). She could be quite the ham. We had rented the costume for an Easter egg hunt in our backyard and had the costume for a few day so Mary decided to have some fun at work. It was funny to see people's reactions when they came to the repro window to order prints and found this chicken greeting them. We had such a fun time in Document Control!  When Mary worked at DEC she was married to Richard (Riff) Riffelmacher who also worked at CXO but was divorced before his death in 2010.  RIP, Mary.  Full obituary here.

 

************************** January 4, 2019 ********************************

 

The Colorado Springs group has also reported the passing of Joseph J. Cosgrove, 82, of New Silver Beach, North Falmouth, MA.  Joe followed Bob Browne as Plant manager at the Rockrimmon plant. Then went to Japan and Hong Kong as Far East Mfg Mgr.

Full obituary here.

 

************************** December 26, 2018 ********************************

 

Our condolences to the Colorado Springs group on the loss of their friend Robert L. Browne, who passed away on his 84th birthday.  Bob and his wife Cynthia together raised seven children and lived in Springfield, Massachusetts; Norristown, Pennsylvania; and Farmington Hills, Michigan before moving to Colorado Springs in 1977 to work at Digital Equipment Corp. He worked for over 40 years in manufacturing engineering and traveled all over the world working in his field.  Full obituary here.

 

************************** December 18, 2018 ********************************

Karen Hamilton reported the passing of Olga M. Caiazzi, 93, of Clinton, MA. Olga enjoyed her career as a bookkeeper and accountant for several companies; including Digital Equipment Corp. in Maynard, from which she retired.  Olga always remained positive and shared laughter with those around her.  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 13, 2018 ********************************

Friend Bob Huntley wrote: Sad to post this but Paul A. Serra of Nashua NH passed away Thursday, December 13th.  Paul fought a 5 year battle with lung cancer and after numerous clinical trials at Dana Farber Cancer Institute it finally got the best of him.  He was a fighter to the end.  I've known Paul for 38 years and he was the best friend you could have.  Paul was 59 years old. He started with Digital Finance right out of College, in Corporate Audit, in 1981 and worked in a number of Senior Finance positions throughout the company. He continued with Compaq and HP.  Paul moved into Operations after the Compaq acquisition and worked there through the HP Acquisition right up until this past November 14th!  Link to full obituary.

 

************************** December 11, 2018 ********************************

Jim Higgins wrote to report sad news that we lost another DEC star with the passing of Delbert E. Lippert, 76, Cobden ON, succumbing to heart disease in December.  Del was an executive in Digital as the Corporate Manager for Educational Services, with Digital for 18 years, and was named an Honorary Colonel in the Canadian Army.

Full obituary here.

 

************************** December 11, 2018 ********************************

Condolences to the Colorado Springs group on the loss of their friend: Charlie Hall, 65, a great friend and fellow IT employee in CXO1/2 during the late 1980’s through early 1990’s died on Tuesday evening, Dec 11th.  Heaven is having some great music tonight!   Full obituary here.

 

************************** December 3, 2018 ********************************

Condolences to Jack and Leslie Mileski and other friends of Bill (William John) Page, 73, of Moultonborough, NH, who passed away after a long battle with prostate cancer. Bill was a Penn State graduate majoring in Mechanical Engineering and was a member of the Kappa Delta fraternity. He also earned his master’s degree in Computer Science at Case Western University, in Cleveland OH. Bill moved to Acton MA to work at Digital Equipment Corporation and later Compaq and Hewlett-Packard. He made many friends there. Full obituary here.

 

************************** November 26, 2018 ********************************

Jerry Bernath reported the sad news of the sudden passing of Mitch Tunkel, 73, of Fort Lauderdale FL, from liver cancer diagnosed just 6 weeks previously.  We send our sincere condolences to Mitch's partner and ex-DECcie Sue Murrell, and to their many DEC friends.  Mitch worked for Digital in marketing in Merrimack for 16 years, from 1971 to 1987, moved to FL, and later formed his real estate business in Ft. Lauderdale, InnVest Hospitality Corporation. Mitch and Sue were popular contributors to the S. FL DEC Connection group, treating us to two intracoastal rides on their yacht, the InnSanity.  Sue can be reached at admiralsue722@gmail.com.

 

************************** November 18, 2018 ********************************

 

Our condolences to the CXO group on the loss of their friend, Mike (Michael Lee) Cope, Sr., 80, Colorado Springs. On leaving the military, Michael joined Burroughs Corporation as a computer engineer. In 1965, Michael and Anita were relocated to Colorado Springs, CO. where Michael took part in the installation of the first computers inside Cheyenne Mt. NORAD complex. He left the Burroughs Corporation and went to work for the Digital Corporation as a field engineer. Michael was named District Manager for Hewlett Packard on the military side.  Full obituary here.

 

************************** November 17, 2018 ********************************

Becky Gibson wrote to us: I’d like to report the passing of my mother, Arlene Gibson, 89, in Ayer MA, on 11/17/18. She retired from DEC in 1990. She worked in the Mill for Metals and Materials and also for HR doing training, etc.  She LOVED DEC! When I started working for Lotus back in 1984 she told me it would be a good place to get experience so I could come work at DEC (I had a very long career with Lotus and IBM ;).)  Becky can be reached at gibsonb@icloud.com   Full obituary here.

 

************************** November 15, 2018 ********************************

Bill Gordon reported the recent death of James H "Jim" Kiser, age 68, of Marlborough, Massachusetts, who passed on November 15, 2018. Worked at Parker Street and in Houston Texas.  Always standing up for the rights of the handicapped from his motorized wheelchair.  link to obituary.

 

************************** November 9, 2018 ********************************

 

Condolences to our Colorado Springs group on the loss of their friend Dick ThompsonDick passed away suddenly on November 9, 2018.  Dick lived a long and full life and is survived by his wife, Wendy, and two sons, Randy & Rod.  A military memorial service was held at Pikes Peak Veterans Cemetery in Colorado Springs.  Dick was a long-time Digital employee and will be missed.

 

************************** November 4, 2018 ********************************

 

Atlant Schmidt wrote to report the sad news that Brian S. McCarthy, 64, passed away: Brian McCarthy (formerly of RSX-11M Engineering, the PDP-11/74 multiprocessor project, and DECUS) of Nashua, NH died on November 4th. Brian served for many years as a Nashua Alderman and rose to become President of the Board of Aldermen.  Full obituary here.

 

************************** October 17, 2018 ********************************

We received the sad news that former Digital manufacturing executive Richard W. (Dick) Esten, 86, of Kansas City MO, has passed away.  Dick joined Digital in 1969 and over his years with DEC, he would work in Westminster, MA, Puerto Rico, New Mexico and at the Mill in Maynard, MA.  In 1997, he finished his career in Geneva, Switzerland as Vice President of Manufacturing for Digital Europe.  Full obituary here.

 

************************** September 28, 2018 ********************************

Our condolences to CXO friends of Kenneth Warren Enger, 72, who passed away in September.   A long-time resident of Colorado Springs, Ken spent his career as a Computer Field Service Engineer at the CX03 facility of Digital Equipment Corp., after serving in the Air Force.

Full obituary here.

 

************************** September 8, 2018 ********************************

Our condolences to friends of (William L.) Bill Plante Jr., 75, who passed away unexpectedly in September. Bill had worked in Westfield, Puerto Rico and Colorado during a distinguished 30 year Digital career. 

Full obituary here.

 

************************** September 3, 2018 ********************************

Thanks to Clem Cole for reporting the passing of Stanley J. Whitlock, 70, of Merrimack NH, who lost his battle with pancreatic cancer in September. Clem adds that Stan was a 30+ year DECie (Fortran Compiler Guru). For more than 20 years, Stan served on the U.S. Standards Committee for the Fortran programming language. In 2015, he was honored by the International Committee for Information Technology Standards for his contributions to the ongoing technical development of the Fortran programming language. Our sincere condolences to Stan's friends and his wife Carolyn and their family. (carolynwhitlock@comcast.net).    Full obituary here.

 

**************************  August 13, 2018 ********************************

Condolences to friends of (Peter James) Pete Smith, 73, of Chatham MA, who was highly influential in the Digital marketing community. In 1970, Peter joined Digital Equipment Corporation as an entry-level Marketing Specialist and eventually rose in the organization to serve as SVP, Worldwide Marketing and SVP, of International Operations during a 24 year career at the company. After leaving Digital in 1994, Peter joined Canonsburg, PA based software company, Ansys, Inc. as President and guided them to a successful 1998 public stock offering as CEO. In 1995, he was named Chairman of the Board and served in this capacity for 19 years. In 2000, he retired as the Ansys CEO to be closer to his family in Massachusetts. Peter was also a former Chairman of the Martin Group, Bluesocket, Inc. and Neartek Inc. and a former director of NxTrend Inc. and Accellos Inc.  Memorial donations may be made in honor of Peter Smith to the Parkinson’s Fund for the neurological studies of Dr. Stephen Gomperts at Mass General Hospital. https://www.massgeneral.org/neurology/support/  Full obituary here.

 

**************************  August 8, 2018 ********************************

 
Our sincere condolences to DEC Arizon