Owen W. Webster

Owen W. Webster

Glen Mills, PA - Owen W. Webster, 89, passed away on Friday, April 13, 2018, at Maris Grove, Glen Mills, Pennsylvania.

Owen was born in Devils Lake in the great State of North Dakota, son of the late Milton and Maude Webster. He grew up on a farm and attended school in a one-room schoolhouse. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of North Dakota in 1951.

From there, he moved east to Pennsylvania State University where he received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry. It was at Penn State where he met and in 1953 married fellow Ph.D. student Lillian Brostek. While at Penn State, he and Lillian had their first child, Ellen.

Upon graduation he and Lillian moved to Wilmington, Delaware, where he joined the Central Research Department of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company at the Experimental Station. He loved working at DuPont and spent his entire 40-year career there. He holds 34 patents including the basic patent for the process, Group Transfer Polymerization, DuPont uses to make ink-jet printer ink. The American Chemical Society gave him its applied Polymer Science award. The Japan Polymer Science Society honored him with its award for International Cooperation. The University of North Dakota gave him an honorary Doctor of Science degree. When he retired in 1995, he held the title of DuPont Fellow. Dad was Adjunct Professor of Chemistry at both the University of Alabama and the University of Pennsylvania. In 1996, DuPont awarded him the Lavoisier Medal for Technical Achievement for his outstanding contributions to the company in their scientific fields. For more information about his contributions to DuPont, please access his Wikipedia page.

He and Lillian settled into the Wilmington suburbs and had four more children, Anne, John, James, and M. Kate. Away from work, he was an enthusiastic and well-regarded tennis player in his younger years. His enthusiasm came with him as he later took up golf. He and Mom entertained frequently and traveled extensively. He was a chess Master. He also greatly enjoyed his poker and bridge clubs, which met monthly. After 43 years of marriage, Lillian passed away in 1996.

In 2005, he married Anna M. Peper of Chadds Ford, PA. With Anna, he continued to travel, sometimes work related and sometimes just for fun. They were married for 11 years until she passed away in 2016.

He was predeceased by his parents; his sister, June Litzinger, and his brother, Wilton Webster. He was also predeceased by Lillian and Anna and his infant grandson, James P. Webster, Jr. He is survived by his children, Ellen, Anne (Steven Grant), John (Ann), James (Donna), and Kate (Stephen Wentzell), and 8 grandchildren, Anne's children Eva and Alex Grant; John's children Katherine, Elizabeth, Christopher, Angela and Andrew; and Jim's daughter Erin. He is also survived by his sisters-in-law Shirley Webster of Devils Lake and Patricia Sherwood of New York City and numerous nephews and nieces. The family wishes to thank the wonderful caregivers at Rose Court in Maris Grove and Home Helpers.

Visitation will be at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 21, 2018 at Chandler Funeral Home, 2506 Concord Pike, Wilmington, DE 19803, followed by his memorial service at 11:00AM. Interment will be private.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society.

For online condolences, please visit Chandlerfuneralhome.com.