In Memoriam


The Department of Mechanical Engineering extends its deepest sympathies to the families of these alumni who passed away recently. • • • • •


Richard Lee DePaul (B.S. 1974) passed away on April 3, 2010, after a swift but courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 58 years old. He had retired in 2007 after a 33-year career in software engineer- ing. DePaul loved automobiles and planes, and could explain how nearly anything worked. He enjoyed spend- ing quality time with his close-knit family both on vacations and at home. His kindness, generosity, and quick wit earned him many friends, and his zest for life will be greatly missed by his twin daughters Kristi and Marta, who were his pride and joy. His is also survived by his mother Martha and sister Deborah.


• • • • • Alumni Updates


John M. Maxwell, Jr. (B.S. 1943) retired in 1986 as a Senior Vice President at Wean Industries. He has spent 20 years playing leading roles with the Glenshaw Players. He also sang professionally as a baritone soloist with the Glenshaw Presbyterian Church.


• • • • •


James Wolfe (B.S. 2004) has returned to Carnegie Mellon and the Tepper School of Business to collaborate with world-class faculty and students on healthcare technol- ogy entrepreneurship. Previously he worked as both an engineer and an entrepreneur.•


Andrew Pinkerton (B.S. 1934) passed away on January 31, 2011, peacefully in his sleep. He was five months shy of 99 years old. After graduation, he joined Pittsburgh Plate Glass. In 1942, as a Reserve Officer, he entered the U.S. Army and served in the Pacific Theater, earning the Bronze Star for meritorious achieve- ment. Pinkerton joined the Fredonia Seed Company in 1946 as President. In 1962 he co-founded Transelco, a producer of chemical compounds, which he sold in 1978. He then retired to Winter Park, Florida, where his avo- cations were golf, travel, gardening, and reading. Pinkerton was preceded in death by his first wife, Ruth, and his second wife, Christina. He is survived by three daughters—Anne, Jane, and Susan—as well as stepdaughters


Krisy and Carla, four grandchildren, and five great grandchildren. He is also survived by his friend Rosalie Mellick King.


• • • • •


Wallace L. Tanner (B.S. 1951) passed away on November 11, 2010, while spending a month in Palm Desert, California, with his beloved wife Evie. He was 81 years old, and died sud- denly after hitting golf balls at the driving range. Evie writes, “I miss him bunches, but I thank God that he went quickly. He was a tough cookie who lived life his way and died his way...a man of principle, character, reason, and logic...with a warm heart many didn’t get to see.” Tanner was cremat- ed in Palm Desert, and his ashes will be scattered in the rugged mountains of the desert this spring.•


MechE Alum to Deliver Commencement Address


Trapped alone in a Utah canyon for nearly a week, pinned by a half-ton boulder, MechE alumnus Aron Ralston (B.S. 1997) had to choose between his hand and his life. He chose survival—amputating his own limb, rappelling 65 feet and hiking seven miles to rescue. Ralston will bring his amazing inspirational story home to Carnegie Mellon on May 15 when he delivers the keynote address at the University’s 114th Commencement ceremony. Ralston’s heroic story is the subject of the film “127 Hours,” which recently received six Oscar nominations, including “Best Picture.” The movie is based on Ralston’s 2004 New York Times best- selling autobiography, Between a Rock and a Hard Place. Ralston lives with his wife Jessica and their son in Boulder, Colorado, where he is an advocate for Utah and Colorado wilderness.•


CARNEGIE MECH 13


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