Jack Roosma, 88, died on February 17, 2012.
Jack was born in 1924 in Haarlem, The Netherlands and lived in occupied Holland during WWII. His wartime experiences include participating in the Dutch underground and his escape from a German slave labor camp in 1945. He served with the Dutch military in Great Britain with the Allied forces following the defeat of Germany. Jack and his wife Carla immigrated to the United States in 1951 and became United States citizens.
He received a BS in Electrical Engineering and Mathematics and did graduate work in mathematics at Yale University. His engineering work primarily involved defense matters early in his career and pollution control thereafter. His employers included major defense contractors such as General Dynamics and General Electric.
He was most proud of, and noted for, the design of certain mission-critical equipment for underwater inertial navigation of nuclear submarines, including the George Washington class of Polaris missile submarines. Much of his later work involved pollution control equipment for electric generating facilities (fossil plants) worldwide.
He was an avid artisanal bread baker and vegetable gardener, and enjoyed classical music of the baroque era and singing in choirs and glee clubs.
Jack is survived by Carla, his wife of 61 years; sons, Jacob and wife, Christine, of Princeton, NJ; Michael and wife, Jean, of Laurel, MD; and daughter, Christina Beitzell and husband, George, of Williamsburg, VA, and granddaughters, Brittany, Chloe and Saskia Beitzell.
Services will be private.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.nelsencares.com.
