In Memoriam: August 2019 to July 2022
View obituary
Mr. Allan W. Neustadt, 93, of Dallas, Texas, and Colorado Springs, Colorado, passed away July 9, 2022, at his Dallas home. He was born Nov. 11, 1928, in Ardmore, Oklahoma, to pioneer oilman and philanthropist Walter Neustadt Sr. and Doris Westheimer Neustadt. He grew up in Ardmore and later graduated from Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania, before attending the University of Oklahoma to study petroleum engineering.
He received his bachelor's and master's degree from OU and went on to work at Westheimer-Neustadt Corporation, where he served as vice president of engineering. After serving as vice president, he was named president of Pilgrim Drilling Company, and later became a partner in Neustadt Land and Development Company. In 1968, he married the love of his life, Marilyn Leaman. They were married 44 years until she passed away in 2013.
View obituary
Col. Harold L. Beasley, retired U.S. Air Force, of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, passed away June 18, 2020, at his home surrounded by family. He was born November 12, 1928, in Christiana, Tennessee, to Elmo and Roberta Miller Beasley.
He was a 1946 graduate of Christiana High School. He attended Middle Tennessee State University eventually transferring to the University of Oklahoma where he earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. He served in the U.S. Air Force where he was a combat veteran during the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War. He later was a pilot for the State of Tennessee during the Alexander and McWhorter administrations. He was a lifelong member of Central Christian Church.
View obituary
Major General Carl Neil Beer, 84, of Warsaw, Missouri, passed away September 7, 2019, from complications of cancer treatment. He died peacefully in the arms of his family at Saint Luke's Hospice House in Kansas City.
Born in Buckhannon, West Virginia, in 1935 to Carl and Vada Beer, he joined the U.S. Air Force through its aviation cadet program in 1955. A command pilot, he had 3,540 flying hours and 265 combat missions. His military decorations and awards include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross with oak leaf cluster, Air Medal with 14 oak leaf clusters, and Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster.
He is a Distinguished Graduate of the University of Oklahoma in the College of Engineering where he earned a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering, magna cum laude in 1962; and his doctorate in operations research in 1973. In 1977, he was named a Distinguished Graduate of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.
In addition to flying fighter-interceptor aircraft, during his Air Force career, he taught mathematics at the Air Force Academy and led numerous studies on tactical and theater nuclear force structure, readiness issues and employment concepts. In 1982, he was named Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff, plans and programs, North American Aerospace Defense Command and became the first Space Command deputy chief of staff, plans.
He began his teaching career at Tulane University (1967-69), later moving to the University of Oklahoma (1969-2000) where he served as chair of the School of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science, George Cross Research Professor, Sun Company Chair of Groundwater Hydrology, and Director of the Environmental and Ground Water Institute. He also was chair of the Faculty Senate and represented OU with the Oklahoma Board of Regents. He taught short courses in environmental impact assessment all over the world for over 40 years and wrote the first EIA textbook used by colleges and government agencies plus 12 books on environmental topics. He earned many awards including being given the Rose Hulman Award by the International Association of Impact Assessment for his contributions world-wide on methods for addressing environmental impacts.
View obituary
Mr. Roger Allen Chapman, 79, passed away August 20, 2019, at the Swedish Medical Center in Seattle after a long battle with cancer. He leaves behind his wife of 57 years, Madalynne (Holt) Chapman, two daughters, Michelle Chapman-Thurber and Marienne Chapman, a sister, Karen (Chapman) Humble, and two grandsons, Aidan and Colin Thurber.
He graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1963 with a master's degree in aerospace engineering. In 1971, he graduated from Stanford Business School with a master's degree, later setting up his own specialized sheet metal company in Fremont, growing it to 150 employees.
Dr. Omer Kircher, Jr. was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, on July 28, 1930. He passed away on May 9, 2020, after a short illness. Raised in Fairland, Oklahoma, he was the son of Omer and Gladys Kircher and brother to Lewis Kircher (deceased 1970). He attended Fairland High School and graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1951 with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering.
While at OU, he served Coach Bud Wilkinson as a member of the Sooner football operations staff including the National Championship team in 1950. He was proud of the small role he played and wore his National Championship ring with pride. He was honored with membership in PE-ET (OU's Top 10 Senior Honor Society).
He worked for Union Carbide in Texas City for a year before attending the University of Wisconsin where he earned a doctorate in chemical cngineering under the supervision of Dr. Olaf Hougen. His doctoral research work was published in the AIChE Journal. Thanks to a prestigious National Science Foundation Fellowship, he completed a two-year program at the MIT Sloan School of Management in one year.
Theodore “Ted” Achilles Kritikos He was born on December 19, 1927, at home, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the youngest of four sons, to Greek immigrants, Zoe Vasileou Ballios and Theodore Nicholas Kritikos. After graduating from Central High School in Tulsa in 1945, he followed his older brother Bill to the University of Oklahoma to study civil engineering. His studies were soon interrupted as he was called on to serve in the U.S. Army as a paratrooper in occupied Japan after World War II. He returned to OU, where he met his future wife, Beatrice Joan “BeJo” Harvey. He earned a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. The couple was married before he was off again to serve his country during the Korean War as an officer in the 578th Engineer Combat Battalion, “C” Company. After the war, he commenced his career in the oil and gas industry.
He spent his early career working for Standard Oil of California, which brought him and his wife to Louisiana in the early 1950s. In 1962, he joined forces with engineer John W. Owensby and founded Owensby & Kritikos, Inc., which provided inspection, testing and engineering services for the oil and gas industry. Over the years, he co-founded several other companies, generally in the oil and gas industry, including Petro-Marine Engineering, TEST (Total Engineering Services Team), Production Management, Geotec Engineering, Worknet Five Hundred, Datec, and P.M. Engineering, with offices in Gretna and Lafayette, Louisiana; Houston, Texas; Grand Junction, Colorado; Anchorage, Alaska; London, England; and Copenhagen, Denmark. In achieving the “American Dream,” he found his greatest rewards in providing livelihoods for and mentoring others while fulfilling his deep desire to provide for his family.
Mark McKinsey Jr.
View Obituary
Christopher ("Chris") E. Politte
View obituaryMr. Christopher ("Chris") E. Politte was born on Valentine's Day in 1960, fitting for a person loved and admired by all who knew him. He had a natural ability to talk to anyone, a love for adventure and unbound intellectual curiosity.
He died August 17, 2020, the day of his 35th wedding anniversary to loving wife, Jane B. Politte. He leaves behind Jane and three sons, John C. Politte, Jacob B. Politte &andJeb L. Politte. He was born in Borger, Texas, moving to Bartlesville, Oklahoma, at the age of 2.
Graduating from the University of Oklahoma in 1982 with a bachelor's degree in engineering, his career with Accenture (formerly, Andersen Consulting) took him from Minneapolis to Denver and all parts in between, landing his family next to the Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve in the hills of their adopted hometown of Austin, Texas.
He retired in 2007 to spend time with his sons, carefully grooming their interests in Sooner football, Cardinal baseball, the Tour de France, Niki Lauda, gardening, technology, travel, basketball, angry birds, soccer and more.
After graduation from OU in 1954 with a bachelor's degree in engineering, he joined Phillips Petroleum Company. His career with Phillips began in Dumas, Texas, in the Natural Gas Department. In 1955, he entered the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He was stationed at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia; Ft. Carson, Colorado; and Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri during his two years of service. After receiving his discharge as a First Lieutenant, he rejoined Phillips. He advanced through several assignments in the Chemicals Department before being assigned to the International Department.
In 1964, he became sales manager for the Far East and Southwest Pacific with headquarters in Tokyo. In 1966, he was named president of Sodefine S.A. in Paris. In 1968, he moved to Brussels as Vice President, Sales for Phillips in Europe and Africa. In 1972, he was named president of Phillips Petroleum Chemicals Europe and Africa. During his assignment in Brussels, the Belgian government knighted him in the Order of Leopold for his role in developing industry in Belgium. In 1977, he returned to the Bartlesville, Oklahoma, headquarters and was named vice president of the Minerals Group in 1981. In 1985, he was elected Senior Vice President and a member of the Management Committee of Phillips. He was also named President of Phillips 66 Natural Gas Company in 1987. He was with Phillips for 38 years, retiring in 1992.
Mr. Franklin E. 'Mike' Withrow, Jr. 89, of Monument, Colorado, died peacefully on October 26, 2020, with family at his side. He was born October 20, 1931, in Omaha, Nebraska, to Franklin and Frances Withrow. He met Ruth D. Bauer while both were attending the University of Oklahoma. They married on December 5, 1953, in Norman, Oklahoma. They had three children, Franklin E. III 'Skip', Corby Jean and Michele Elizabeth.
He graduated from OU with both bachelor's and master's degrees in civil engineering. He worked for the City of Wichita water department for over 25 years retiring as manager of the department's water treatment facilities.
Mr. Leon Zelby passed away in Norman, Oklahoma, on November 9, 2020. Born in Sosnowiec, Poland in March 1925, to Herschl and Helen Zylberberg, he grew up in Poland and survived nearly two years in the Auschwitz/Birkenau concentration camp.
After emigrating to the United States in February 1946, he lived in the Philadelphia area and served in the Pennsylvania National Guard. He worked for several years and then went to the University of Pennsylvania graduating with a degree in electrical engineering with distinction in 1956, and was the varsity fencer of the year in 1955. He earned a master's degree in electrical engineering at the California Institute of Technology in 1958. He returned to the University of Pennsylvania and earned a doctorate in electrical engineering in 1961, consulting during that period for Lincoln Laboratories and RCA.
Upon graduation, he became an assistant professor, then an associate professor of electrical engineering at Penn. He moved to Norman in 1967 as a professor and director of the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science for several years. He was then a professor at OU until his retirement, was the editor of engineering publications and was the author of numerous scholarly papers. He was a champion bridge player, an avid reader, a pilot and a flight instructor.
After emigrating to the United States in February 1946, he lived in the Philadelphia area and served in the Pennsylvania National Guard. He worked for several years and then went to the University of Pennsylvania graduating with a degree in electrical engineering with distinction in 1956, and was the varsity fencer of the year in 1955. He earned a master's degree in electrical engineering at the California Institute of Technology in 1958. He returned to the University of Pennsylvania and earned a doctorate in electrical engineering in 1961, consulting during that period for Lincoln Laboratories and RCA.
Upon graduation, he became an assistant professor, then an associate professor of electrical engineering at Penn. He moved to Norman in 1967 as a professor and director of the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science for several years. He was then a professor at OU until his retirement, was the editor of engineering publications and was the author of numerous scholarly papers. He was a champion bridge player, an avid reader, a pilot and a flight instructor.
