Dennis Owen Donnelly

1942 - 2015

Dennis Owen Donnelly
April 10, 1942 - August 5, 2015
Dennis Owen Donnelly, age 73, of Pocatello, passed away on August 5, 2015, in his home after succumbing to an intense fight with cancer.
Dennis was born April 10, 1942, in Passaic, New Jersey to James Andrew Donnelly and Elizabeth Galinak. Dennis graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Engineering Physics in 1964, and from New York University with a Master's of Science in Electrical Engineering in 1965. Dennis had hoped to be an astronaut, but poor eyesight prevented him from attaining that dream. He pursued summer internships at Cape Canaveral doing work on rocketry and instrumentation, and at Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he worked on automated guidance systems. He then worked for several years for Autonetics developing missile guidance systems.
Ultimately, his conscience dictated that he could do more good with his life than design weapons. He took a one-year sabbatical in Albuquerque, during which he discovered amateur astronomy and the joy and art of crafting telescopes. He then joined Volunteers in Service to America and was posted to serve on Fort Hall Indian Reservation. He occupied a small house at Ross Fork Creek, where he enjoyed an exceptionally dark and beautiful night sky, and made fast friendships with the community and his fellow volunteers that sustained him throughout his life.
After his VISTA service, he sought a peaceful application for his technical skills, and came to oversee Bannock Hospital's transition to electronic record keeping. Once he completed his work at Bannock Hospital, he took a job in robotics with Spalding Sports in Springfield, Massachusetts, but circumstances prevented the family from being able to move from Pocatello to join him. Family was too important, so Dennis returned to Pocatello and found a position doing circuit design at American Semiconductors, Inc., and he remained in Pocatello until the present day.
Dennis had many passions. He was a dedicated activist for peace, social justice and the environment, especially in opposition to nuclear weaponry and nuclear power. He helped lead the Pocatello Astronomical Society for many years and did extensive mentoring, community outreach and education on astronomy, and even developed and marketed the first automated guidance systems for amateur telescope users. He deeply loved baseball, which he played from early childhood through college and on well into his sixties. Later in life, Dennis developed an intense interest in classical music, opera and ballet, and spent considerable time with the large community of dog lovers who enjoy ISU's Bartz Field.
Dennis met his wife, Marianne Condon, when she was running for Congress as a write-in anti-war candidate in 1969-1970, and they married in 1971. Dennis and Marianne have three children - Suzanne, a university book store manager in Pomona, California, Julianne, director of the International Rescue Committee's office in Boise, and David, who works on nuclear nonproliferation issues at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Seattle.
Dennis is survived by his wife of forty-four years, Marianne Donnelly, his brother, Fred, his three children, Suzanne, Julianne, and David, his six grandchildren, Brendan, Quinn, Devin, Kai, Liam, and Alarie, and his shaggy black dog, Scamp.
An informal gathering for people to meet and share their memories of Dennis will be held the evening Friday, Aug. 14, from 6:00 - 8:00 pm at the picnic pavilion in Centennial Park in Pocatello.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that people make contributions to the Snake River Alliance or other local or national organizations dedicated to peace and the arts.