Richard Glenn Plaisted

Richard Glenn Plaisted was born on August 20, 1921 to Glenn Walter Plaisted and Greta Myrtle (Champlin) in Wesleyville, near Erie, Pennsylvania, and died November 9, 2017. When he was two years old, his family moved to Northeast, Pennsylvania, where they made a living during the Depression buying chickens from farmers and dressing them for market.

Richard graduated from North East High School in North East, Pa. in 1939. In 1942 Richard completed a Machinist Apprentice course and worked for a few years for the General Electric company. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1946 cum laude with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. He married Elizabeth Jean Justus in 1945, a daughter Linda was born in 1946, and a son David was born in 1948. Richard was an instructor at the University of Pittsburgh for one year, and taught engineering at Bucknell for one year from 1947 to 1948 while the family lived in Vicksburg, Pennsylvania.

They then moved near Pittsburgh where Richard worked for various engineering companies until he started with Westinghouse Electric Corporation as an Application Engineer in their Rolling Mill Engineering Department in 1954. During this time, he also raised the roof of his house. He remained at Westinghouse until his retirement in 1985, working on negotiations for large steel and non-ferrous projects, writing technical specifications, and traveling all over the world to meet with customers and potential customers. He was a Registered Professional Engineer in Pennsylvania and a member of the IEEE, where he was Chairman of the Metal Industry Committee for two years. He was also a member of the AISE and delivered a paper on conversion of mercury arc rectifier power supplies to the Thyristor type. He was President of the Westinghouse Engineers Association for two years, and Chairman of the IEEE Metal Industry Committee for two years. He has two patents.

In church activities, he was a Sunday School Teacher for many years in Methodist and Lutheran churches, had a license to preach in the Methodist Church, was Sunday School Superintendent in the Lutheran Church for two years, and was a chalice bearer in the Episcopalian Church for three years. In 1965 the family moved to Williamsville, New York as part of a Westinghouse move.

In 1985 Richard and Betty moved to Fearrington Village in Chatham County, North Carolina, to be near their grandchildren. Richard moved to Carolina Meadows in Chapel Hill in 2014, where he stayed for the rest of his life. During this time, he often entertained the old folks by singing, dancing, and playing the harmonica. He will be greatly missed. Richard was preceded in death by his wife, his sister Lucille, and his daughter Linda.

He is survived by his son, two grandchildren, and two great grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at Carolina Meadows, 100 Carolina Meadows, Chapel Hill, NC 27517-8505, 1-800-458-6756, at 2:00 P.M. on Friday, December 1, 2017.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be given to Carolina Meadows or to Habitat for Humanity.

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