ALFRED C. JACOBSEN

ALFRED C. JACOBSEN - SOUTH HERO, Vt./COCOA BEACH, Fla. - Alfred C. Jacobsen, 88, died Monday, July 28, 2014, at the Island Health & Rehabilitation Center in Merritt Island, Fla. Al, to his friends and family, was born on May 25, 1926, in Brooklyn, N.Y., the son of Norwegian parents, August and Ida (Mathisen) Jacobsen. He was a first generation American, although throughout his life, Al visited Norway and celebrated his Norwegian heritage. Al adored his mother, likely because she let him get away with all sorts of childhood shenanigans on the streets of Brooklyn. Al served in the U.S. Army, 82nd Airborne Division, during WWII. He graduated from City College in New York and married Irene Kuminski in Brooklyn in 1951. She was his life-long partner of 62 years. He decided a move out of the city to upstate New York was a good opportunity. A few years later he decided to take a chance on joining IBM. That chance was wellrewarded, which earned him a national reputation at IBM for the statistical testing he developed for purposes of quality control. He worked for 26 years at IBM in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and later in Essex Junction. While living in Vermont, he enjoyed competing in golf and tennis, skiing the Vermont mountains and fishing and sailing on Lake Champlain. He later had a home built on the lakeshore in South Hero. He made his last move to Cocoa Beach, Fla., as a snow bird returning to his home in South Hero for part of every year. Al and Irene enjoyed almost 30 years of retirement watching the sun set over Lake Champlain and the Atlantic waves wash up on the Florida beach. In addition to his wife, Irene, Al is survived by his son, Tom (New Jersey); and his daughter, Carol of South Hero, Vt. A funeral service will be held on Monday, Aug. 4, 2014, at 1:15 p.m. in the South Hero Congregational Church on South Street. Burial will follow in the South Hero Cemetery to mark the final return of the Brooklyn boy that made good in Vermont. Online condolences may be made to www.minorfh.com.