William Henry Lawrence of Ann Arbor passed away Nov. 30, 2017.
He was born 6 January, 1926, In Dunmore, Pennsylvania near Scranton. He was raised by his Aunt Cele and his father. He grew up next to Dunmore’s grand Nie Aug Park.
He spent many summer days by its waterfalls, steep cliffs, museum, amusement park, tunnels and woods. The hobbies of his youth included home-made marionette shows.
In his teens, he would purchase used radios for parts and make transmitters and amplifiers and recording gear which he would use with a musical record cutting machine he purchased. In his late teens, he passed his FCC license and was able to work for the local radio station. An unknown benefactor applied to RCA electronics school in New York City, on his behalf (The acceptance letter was a surprise) and he spend an entire fall there until he was drafted.
He was trained further in electronics by the Army Air Corps. He was on a ship in the Pacific Ocean when Japan surrendered. Instead of hitting the beach as part of the invasion, he drove his radio truck onto the beach as part of the peaceful occupation.
When he returned to Scranton, he met and married Elizabeth Jones. Soon he has enrolled in the Electrical Engineering undergraduate program at Syracuse University through the G.I. Bill. While at Syracuse, they lived in married student housing, while he studied and worked on the television assembly line at General Electric.
After graduation, he applied for a research position at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor where he eventually received a patent for RADAR design as well as being the core of the U of M School of Engineering Continuing Education Summer Conferences program. He was a past Chapter President of the American Society of Tool and Manufacturing Engineers (ASTME)/Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME), Ann Arbor Area Chapter 79.
A private burial of ashes will be held at the First United Methodist Church Memorial Garden in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
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Thomas William Zemke of Pinckney, originally from Ann Arbor, formerly of Las Vegas, NV and Santa Monica, CA, age 61, died Tuesday, December 5, 2017 at his home.
He was born May 22, 1956 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the son of Frederick A. and Winifred E. (Gasser) Zemke.
Tom graduated from Pioneer High School in 1974, and attended Lawrence Institute of Technology and Central Michigan University, earning his Bachelor’s Degree in Construction Engineering. He worked for Dapco Industries in Dexter, and later worked for U of M Hospital in Ann Arbor. Tom lived out west for a few years to pursue his dreams, and enjoyment of singing, dancing, and music. He appeared on “America’s Got Talent” twice.
He is survived by his brother, Fred (Lori) Zemke of Munith. He was preceded in death by his parents.
No memorial services will be held.
For the full obituary, please click here.
