I In Memoriam
John Gaines7 Letters to Editor Inspired Classmates John G. Gaines Jr., ChE 40, of Prairie Village, Kan., a prolific writer of letters to the editors of a number of publications, died March 18, two days after his final email to the GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI MAGA-
ZINE and five days after his 92nd birthday. Mr. Gaines' last published letter to the ALUMNI MAGAZINE appeared in the
March/April issue. In it, he asked to hear from members of the class of 1940. "John Gaines' interest in his classmates did pay off by nudging them to reach out to each other," said Living History director Marilyn Somers. "A classmate of his, Dr. Burney Huff, contacted me and asked if I would help him contact the other surviving members of the ChE class of 1940.1 sent a letter to every member we had an address for —17. Since then Dr. Huff has reported the responses are coming in." One of Mr. Gaines' six surviving children, Marianne Gaines, said her father's letters were published frequently in the Kansas City Star. "Since his passing we have come across responses to his letters from people such as Bill Clinton, Richard
commander in the Pacific fleet and later in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Edward Alva S t r a u s s e r Sr., EE 48, of Villa Rica, Ga., on March 25. He was a registered engineer in Pennsylvania and Georgia and a registered engineer surveyor in Georgia. In his career, he was involved in supplying electrical service in rural north Georgia while at Patterson and Dewer Engineering and served as director of the computer center at Southwire. He served in the Pacific fheater in fhe Army. Survivors include son Edward A. Strausser Jr., ABiol 74. J o e l William Thompson, ME 42, of Seabrook Island, S.C., on March 3. A naval officer during World War II, he joined Babcock and Wilcox as an engineer in 1942 and retired as vice president of sales in 1984. He led homeowners of Seabrook Eland to incorporate it as a town and was elected iE first mayor in 1987. A trumpet and cornet player with a love for jazz and big band music, Mr. Thompson formed The Barrier Islanders, a band that performed locally. 76 Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine
May/June 2010
John Gaines, right, celebrated graduation with his future wife and friend Bill Wood.
Nixon and Lamar Hunt, owner of his beloved Kansas City Chiefs." She was not surprised to learn her father also wrote regularly to the ALUMNI MAGAZINE.
"He loved his time at Georgia Tech and spoke about it frequently," she said. "When the funeral home asked which prayer we would like to have printed on the back of the prayer cards, my brother
Lenox Thompson 'Tom" Thornton, EE 48, of Braselton, Ga., on March 22. Mr. Thornton, who earned a master's degree in journalism from Emory University and later a teaching certificate, was a teacher at Cross Keys High School in Atlanta from 1958 to 1975. A member of the Army ROTC at Tech, he served in the Army during World War II. He was a deacon and elder at hE church and photographed more than 1,000 courthouses across the country. Thomas R. Turner, IE 47, of MemphE, Term., on March 27. He retired from Buckeye Cellulose as division manager for external affairs after 40 years with the company. An Army Air Corps lieutenant during World War II, he was a Sunday school teacher at his church and a recipient of the Volunteer Center of MemphE' Golden Rule Award. He was chairman of the boards of the Memphis Chamber of Commerce, Junior Achievement and Goodwill Industries. David Ellery Willis, ME 42, of Rock Hill, S.C., formerly of Oak Ridge, Tenn., on Feb. 17. Mr.
knew immediately what it should be. I know that [Ramblin' Wreck] wasn't exactly what the church had in mind for a prayer, but it was a very fitting tribute to our dad and the school that he loved." Mr. Gaines married his sweetheart from Agnes Scott College, Nina Broughton, who survives him, on Aug. 11,1941. "Dad was in Dutch Harbor when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and just outside Berlin when the Germans surrendered. He led Company C of the 1323rd Engineers, the first black troops into Europe" after D-Day son Mark Gaines said. Mr. Gaines was awarded battle stars for the Battle of Midway and for five major battles in Europe. He retired from the military in 1968 after serving reserve duty in the Field Artillery. He was a self-employed manufacturer's representative in the Kansas City area for 15 years before going to work for Devine Lighting. He retired in 1982, then traveled extensively, including to visit a Belgian family that had befriended him during the Battle of the Bulge.
WillE retired from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. A co-op student at Tech, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Air Corps and served in North Africa and Italy during World War II. He was a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
1950s Denny Shermer Alford IM 57, of Houston, on Feb. 10. He co-owned Lighting & Electrical Sales Co. An Eagle Scout in his youth, he was an elder at his church and a frequent Georgia Tech Alumni Travel participant. Robert Bruce Bailey Sr., EE 52, of Birmingham, Ala., on March 18. He retired from Southern Company Services. In the Army in World War II, he maintained and repaired radios on jeeps, halftracks and tanks, fhen was attached to the 150fh Signal Company, 10th Armored Division and was part of the crusade to free Europe. He attended Tech on the GI Bill.