In Memoriam: 1940s

Notices sorted by graduation date

Robert Septimus Pace Jr. (Educ ’40, Grad ’43 L/M) of Troy, Va., died June 2, 2011. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. At the University, he served on Student Council. He later worked for Jordan-Kitts Music Co. in Washington, D.C., for 34 years. On his retirement, Mr. Pace returned to the family home, Pace-Steger Place, near Troy. His parents purchased the home, which had been a working farm since 1794, in 1918. He began a major restoration of the main house in 1978 and furnished the home with the many antiques he had collected. In 1991, Mr. Pace completed the construction of a brick museum on the property that housed his many antiques and Pace family heirlooms. He bequeathed the entire property to the University of Virginia Alumni Association for research and professorships. Mr. Pace was active in the Fluvanna County Historical Society and was a supporter of the Fluvanna County SPCA. The current shelter sits on land donated by Mr. Pace, who led the fundraising efforts and oversaw the construction of the building.

Henry Leidheiser Jr. (Col ’41, Grad ’49) of Venice, Fla., died March 10, 2011. He had a long and distinguished scientific career spanning more than 40 years, receiving recognition as a leading international expert in corrosion. His research career began at the Virginia Institute for Scientific Research in Richmond, Va., where he worked as a research chemist and later as director and chief executive officer. More recently, Mr. Leidheiser received the distinction of becoming professor emeritus at Lehigh University, in Bethlehem, Pa., where he was a professor of chemistry, director of the Center for Surface and Coatings Research and chairman of the chemistry department. Over the course of his career, Mr. Leidheiser authored or edited eight books and 265 publications, and received numerous professional accolades, including the Whitney Award from the National Association of Corrosion Engineers, the Tambour Award from the 11th World Congress of Metal Finishing and the Humboldt Senior Scientist Award. He served as a NATO fellow to Cambridge University and was an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science for research in corrosion. Survivors include a son, Henry Leidheiser III (Com ’72 L/M); a grandson, Jed H. Leidheiser (Engr ’05); and two granddaughters, Virginia LeBaron (Nurs ’96 L/M) and Tanner LeBaron Wallace (Col ’99).

Charles S. Stringfellow (Engr ’41) of Richmond, Va., died March 6, 2011. At the University, he was a member of Alpha Tau Omega and Tau Beta Pi fraternities. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He later worked with Atlantic Coast Line Railroad in Wilmington, N.C., as an assistant electrical engineer. He held various positions throughout his career with the railroad and was the chief mechanical officer at the time of his retirement from CSX Corporation in 1983. He was active in the Association of American Railroads.

Roger D. Fraley (Com ’43 L/M) of Denver died June 13, 2011. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. At the University, he was a member of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, the Honor Committee and T.I.L.K.A., among others. He was elected to the General Assembly of Virginia and served one term before moving to Scott County. Mr. Fraley, along with his brother, owned and ran furniture and hardware stores in that area. He joined Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Bean and ran the Mobile, Ala., office for three years before opening an office in Richmond, Va. He later opened an office for Dean Witter in Richmond and became a stockbroker for the company in Denver. Survivors include a son, Roger D. Fraley Jr. (Grad ’78).

C. Downing Tait Jr. (Col ’43, Med ’47 L/M) of Atlanta died April 20, 2011. At the University, he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and had his own sports column in The Cavalier Daily. He was also a member of the Glee Club. He joined the Navy ROTC and was later a first lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. After an internship at Bellevue Hospital in New York City and residency at Compton Sanitarium in California and Rockland State Hospital in upstate New York, Dr. Tait received his certificate in psychoanalytic medicine and entered private practice in New York City. In 1964, he moved to Atlanta and became professor of psychiatry at Emory University and a training analyst at the Georgia Mental Health Institute. He also served as president of the Atlanta Psychoanalytic Society, of which he was a life member. In later years, he focused on his private practice, not retiring until 2010 at age 86. Survivors include a daughter, Jennifer B. Tait (Col ’86 L/M).

Zebulon Vance Hooker II (Col ’44, Grad ’46) of Salem, Va., died April 8, 2011. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II. After his military service, he taught English at Roanoke College for 40 years.

Emory W. Parrott (Col ’44, Grad ’48) of Midland, Texas, died April 6, 2011. He served in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. At the University, he was a member of Sigma Xi, The Scientific Honor Society. Mr. Parrott began his career as a geologist with D&E Petroleum in Abilene, Texas, in January 1948, then moved to Midland in 1957 with Champlin Petroleum. He retired from Anadarko at age 67, after being active in the American Association of Petroleum Geologists and the West Texas Geological Society. Mr. Parrott was instrumental in founding the Midland Association for Retarded Citizens and the Opportunity Center. He served as a trustee and board member for the Permian Basin Community Centers for Mental Health and Mental Retardation and the Lubbock State School Parent Association.

Edward C. Smith (Col ’44, Grad ’50) of Oceanside, Calif., died June 11, 2011. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. At the University, he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi. Mr. Smith spent more than 50 years as a radiation physicist in the aerospace industry, co-discovering the phenomenon known as a single event upset 40 years ago.

Helen F. Whitesell Smith (Nurs ’45) of Knoxville, Tenn., died March 15, 2011. She served in the U.S. Army Nurses Corps during World War II. She was a registered nurse in surgery at the University of Tennessee Medical Center until her retirement in 1989. She volunteered at Ijams Nature Center. Survivors include her husband, G. Pedro Smith (Col ’44, Grad ’50 L/M).

John “Jack” C. Williams Jr. (Col ’45) of Lafayette Hill, Pa., died April 29, 2011. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. At the University, he was a member of Sigma Chi fraternity. From 1952 to 1962, he was vice president and general manager of Weighing & Controls in Hatboro, Pa. From 1962 to 1978, Mr. Williams was executive vice president of STV, a construction management firm in Douglassville, Pa. He founded Peripheral Systems in Oley, Pa., in 1978, a business that, among other services, provided data processing and records management. Mr. Williams was a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Data Processing Managers Association and the National Society of Professional Engineers.

Howard Osler Woltz Jr. (Col ’45, Law ’48 L/M) of Richmond, Va., died Jan. 2, 2011. While at the University, he was a member of Alpha Tau Omega, Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Delta Phi. He served as president of the Inter-fraternity Council, president of the Student Council and was a member of the Honor Committee. He was also a member of the T.I.L.K.A. society and a Lawn resident. He practiced law in Mount Airy from 1948 until 1954. In 1953, Mr. Woltz entered the concrete block business with a company that was the predecessor of Insteel Industries. Mr. Woltz was an organizer and former chairman of the board of trustees of Surry Community College, former chairman of the Mount Airy/Surry County Airport Authority, and a founder and former president of the Greater Mount Airy United Fund. In addition, he was instrumental in the development of Raven Knob Boy Scout Reservation, an organizer of hospice services in Surry County and a founder of the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. His contribution to the community was acknowledged in 1991, when he was named Citizen of the Year by the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Mount Airy.

Edwin L. Bennett (Col ’47) of Memphis, Tenn., died April 4, 2011. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II. He retired as a stockbroker in 1992 from the company then known as Dean Witter.

Claiborne W. Fitchett (Med ’47, Res ’49) of Virginia Beach died July 2, 2011. He served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. At the University, he was a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity. In 1954, he returned to Norfolk to begin his medical career, first in private practice with his father and then as a founder and leader in Norfolk Surgical Group until his retirement. In his more than 40 years of practicing surgery at Norfolk General and Leigh Memorial hospitals, Dr. Fitchett held a number of surgery leadership positions, including chief of division of general surgery at Medical Center Hospitals in 1978. He played an instrumental role in the founding of Eastern Virginia Medical School, where he was a member of the faculty and also served leadership roles, including rector. Dr. Fitchett was active in local, state and national medical and surgical societies and held leadership roles including president of Virginia Surgical Society, the Southern Society of Clinical Surgeons and the University of Virginia Medical Alumni Association. He enjoyed the camaraderie from his association with The Virginia Club and his book club, The Literary Society.

Henry C. Ikenberry (Law ’47) of Chevy Chase, Md., died June 1, 2011. He served in the U.S. Navy. At the University, he was the associate editor of the Virginia Law Review, a member of the Order of the Coif and the Raven Society. Mr. Ikenberry was for many years a member of the executive committee of the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson, and served as its chairman. He also served as a director of Pargas Inc. and was for many years a director of Union Trust Co. and its successor companies, becoming First American Bank of D.C. He served on the board of trustees and the executive committee of Mary Baldwin College, and is a life member of the Dean’s Council of the University of Virginia Law School and an honorary trustee of Bridgewater College.

Virginia Schoos Wilkins (Nurs ’47) of Colonial Beach, Va., died June 17, 2011. She served as a member of the U.S. Cadet Nurse Corps. Ms. Wilkins retired from the Westmoreland County Public Schools, where she worked as a school nurse from 1972 to 1991. Prior to that, she worked as a public health nurse in King George County for four years. She was an honorary life member of the Virginia Congress of Parents and Teachers.

Rosalyn “Bootsie” Maddox Oglesby (Educ ’48) of Woodstock, Ga., died March 31, 2011. She volunteered for more than 20 years at Moses Cone Hospital in Greensboro, N.C. She enjoyed needlework and playing cards.

Thomas N. Parker Jr. (Col ’48, Law ’50 L/M) of Warm Springs, Va., died April 26, 2011. He served in the U.S. Navy. He practiced law for more than 50 years in Richmond and in Clarksville, Va. He also served the Commonwealth as a member of the House of Delegates and was a member of the board of the Christian Children’s Fund. Survivors include a daughter, Elizabeth Parker Coughter (Col ’75).

Richard Harding Poff (Law ’48) of Tullahoma, Tenn., died June 27, 2011. He served in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. He practiced law in Radford before his election to Congress in 1952. Mr. Poff served the 6th Congressional District of Virginia for 10 consecutive terms. A noted Constitutional scholar, Mr. Poff was instrumental in drafting both the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution relating to succession to the Presidency in cases of death, disability, or removal; and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. In 1972, Mr. Poff received an appointment to the Supreme Court of Virginia, where he served as an associate justice until his retirement and appointment as a senior justice in 1989.

William D. Anderson Jr. (Col ’49 L/M) of Marietta, Ga., died April 3, 2011. At the University, he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. He later served in the U.S. Navy at the Bethesda Naval Hospital. Mr. Anderson had a lifelong career with the Coca-Cola Co., from which he retired in 1992.

Ellison C. Pierce Jr. (Col ’49) of Boston died April 3, 2011. At the University, he was a member of Sigma Chi fraternity and the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society. For 35 years, Dr. Pierce was on staff at the New England Deaconess Hospital in Boston and served as chairman of the anesthesiology department. He was also a past president of the American Society of Anesthesiologists and the founder of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation, the pioneer organization dedicated to ensuring patient safety. He was inducted into the Royal College of Anesthetists, was an associate clinical professor of anesthesia at Harvard Medical School, received a special citation from the Food and Drug Administration, and accepted awards from the American Medical Association, the Royal Society of Medicine (UK) and the Russian Society of Anesthesiology. Dr. Pierce spoke on the topic of safety in the U.S., Japan, Russia, Europe, South America and Australia, and is known to anesthesia students for his appearances in the FDA’s safety and training films.

Millard Warren (Com ’49) of Babylon Village, N.Y., died May 10, 2011. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II. For more than 30 years, he worked for Citibank in New York City and in Melville, N.Y. Mr. Warren was also a columnist for the Babylon Beacon, reporting on Babylon High School sports in addition to Babylon Village Board meetings and other items of interest. He was a board member and chairman of the board of the Hewlett School in East Islip and a volunteer for Good Samaritan Hospital.

John E. Wood (Col ’49) of Wilmington, N.C., died May 8, 2011. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. During his time at the University, he lived on the Lawn. His area of study and university teaching was modern British history as well as the history of flight, which grew out of his love of flight as a teenage aviator in Richmond. Mr. Wood’s first teaching position was at The Citadel in Charleston, S.C. He went on to join the faculty of Madison College in Harrisonburg, Va., which became James Madison University during his tenure. He retired as professor emeritus in 1997, after 37 years. He also had a long tenure on the Virginia State Library Board as well as the Virginia State Democratic Central Committee. He was a founding member of the Oak Grove Theater in Staunton, Va., and performed in numerous plays over the years. Survivors include his brother, James Newton Wood II (Col ’50), and two daughters, Judith D. Wood (Arch ’81) and Rebecca Wood Knox (Engr ’86 L/M).