David Zucker

1922 - 2013

David Zucker

David Zucker, 91, of Palm Springs, Calif., passed away April 8, 2013 in Palm Springs. He was born February 14, 1922 to Joseph and Yetta Zucker in Brooklyn, N.Y. His first job out of college was at Ontario Ordinance, a manufacturer of explosives that were being sent to the USSR under the LendLease Program. In the meantime he found time off to marry Katherine Carlotta Gold on December 26, 1943 in Niagara Falls, N.Y. His second job was a bigger bang working on the atomic bomb at Hooker Chemical. His next engineering position was at the Titanium Alloys division of National Lead. Titanium is in commercial use today because of a small group of chemical/metallurgical engineers working at this plant. David and others in his group discovered how to make titanium sponge which is used to later form titanium ingots. Without this critical step, the development of titanium may have been delayed. Maintaining a desire to keep at the cutting edge of technology, David left National Lead and took the family to Pittsburgh, Pa. in 1957 to work in atomic energy. The nuclear Navy was still a glimmer in the eyes of Adm. Rickover when David started his new job at Bettis Atomic Power. Under David's careful eye and many others, reactors were crafted for the aircraft carrier Enterprise, the submarine Nautilus and the nuclear frigate Bainbridge, the first ships in the nuclear Navy. The first commercial reactor for electric generation at Shippingport, Pa. was also one of David's projects. 1965 saw David taking his family to Columbus, Ohio and the Battelle Memorial Institute. With the end of the war in 1977, Battelle had to contract and lay off people. As the last one hired, David was laid-off after 35 years of being an engineer. Engineering jobs were hard to come by and David sought out a new career. At 55 years old, David reconfigured himself as a stockbroker. Once again he studied hard to pass all of the required exams: stocks, bonds and life insurance/annuities. He scored highly on each of the exams. David retired in 1987 and moved to Palm Springs. During his time as an engineer, David has been at the cutting edge of technologies starting with the Atomic Bomb. He lived in a time when technology and engineering was constantly changing and growing. He made himself a part of this advancement in humanity. He deserved to belong to the Greatest Generation. David was an active member of the Zionist Organization of America and as he moved from city to city, he was elected president of each local chapter. In Pittsburgh, he and Katherine formed a joint ZOA/Hadassah Youth Commission and established Young Judea in the Tri-State area. Friends in Palm Springs introduced Katherine and him to ARMDI and after several years he became president. Under his presidency, the Midbar chapter donated 31 ambulances and related vehicles for use in Israel. Wherever he lived, David was active in local Jewish life. A member of multiple synagogues and organizations. In Palm Springs, Katherine and he were active members of Temple Isaiah. He was a chemical/metallurgical/nuclear engineer for 35 years and a stockbroker for 10 years. He was president of Zionist Organization of America, Niagara Falls, NY Chapter, ibid Pittsburgh, Pa., ibid Columbus, Ohio, president of Armdi Palm Springs Chapter and Temple Isaiah, Palm Springs. He served in the US Army from 1945 to 1946 as a private. He is survived by his daughter, Melanie Garver of Arlington, Texas; son, Jeffrey Zucker of Bellingham, Wash; sister, Mildred Hiller of San Bernardino, Calif.; brothers, Arnold Zucker of New Jersey and Florida, Irwin Zucker of Beverly Hills, Calif., Ralph Bengon of Rancho Mirage, Calif.; 3 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his spouse, Katherine Zucker. Interment is scheduled for April 12, 2013 in Cathedral City, Calif. The family suggests that donations be made to ARMDI. Arrangements are under the direction of Forest Lawn Cathedral City.

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