Duane Uson Gaskell May 16, 1918 – October 19, 2018 Duane Uson Gaskell, 100, passed away on October 19, 2018 here in College Place, WA. A committal service, with full military honors, will be held November 30th at the Bakersfield National Cemetery in California. Duane was born in East Hartford, Connecticut, May 16, 1918 to Arthur and Florence (Smith) Gaskell.
Duane attended grammar schools in Hartford and Somers Connecticut, graduating from Hartford Public High School in 1937. … Read More » He obtained a B.A. in Chemistry and Physics from Atlantic Union College in 1942. While a student at Atlantic Union, he worked as a licensed stationary steam and diesel engineer in the central electric power and heat generating plant.
After graduating from college, Duane worked for Pan American Airways-Africa, Ltd as a flight radio operator and navigator in Africa and the Middle East. In the spring of 1943, he accepted a commission as a Lieutenant in the United States Naval Reserve. As a radio-radar electronics officer, he attended the naval officer’s school for radio and radar at Bowdoin College, Maine, the M.I.T. Naval Training School in Boston, and an advanced school for special airborne equipment in Corpus Christi, Texas.
Duane’s first post was in Hawaii where he oversaw the ground installation of special testing equipment. Later, he served as a radar maintenance officer for night fighters aboard the carrier U.S.S. Bennington. For his service on the Bennington, he received battle stars for Iwo Jima and Okinawa along with a World War II Victory Medal.
Returning stateside in 1946, Duane served the remainder of his active duty as an Electronic Division officer in the Assembly and Repair Department at the Naval Airfield in Alameda, CA. Following his naval service, Duane attended Boston University and in 1948 received a M.A. in Physics. He married Betty Jane Slabach on December 27, 1949 in Galion, Ohio.
After teaching physics briefly at the University of Connecticut’s Fort Trumbul campus, Duane returned to Boston University, where he obtained his Ph.D. in Physics in 1952. After receiving his doctorate, Duane spent his professional career working in the aerospace industry as a research engineer and consultant to various companies such as Sperry Rand, General Dynamics, and Lockheed Missile and Space Company. He finished his career consulting for the Navy at their Mare Island facility in California.
Duane was a long-time Ham radio operator, holding first-class radio-telephone and second-class radiotelegraph operator licenses, which qualified him to operate commercial radio and television broadcasting stations. He was also a private pilot, completing two cross-country trips from California to Connecticut with his family, the first time in a Tri-Pacer and the second in his brother Art’s Bonanza. Duane loved the outdoors and often took his family hiking and camping at state and national parks.
Duane is survived by his brother, Edwin (Pam) Gaskell of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; his children, Carolyn Gaskell of College Place; John (Jeanette) Gaskell of Corning, CA; Marilyn (Roger) Wooden of Bakersfield, CA; and James (Neva) Gaskell of Kelseyville, CA; as well as three grandsons, two granddaughters, nieces, and nephews. Duane was preceded in death by his parents; his wife Betty (Slabach) Gaskell; a sister, Virginia (Gaskell) Urban; and his brothers, Gordon Gaskell, and Arthur Gaskell II. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Adventist World Radio or the Adventist Development and Relief Agency, through the funeral home.
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