Reynold Laurence "Rey" Caleen

Reynold Laurence Caleen Reynold "Rey" Laurence Caleen, 95, died Monday, February 4, 2008. A private burial is planned in West Palm Beach, Florida. Memorial donations may be made to First Presbyterian Church of West Palm Beach, 301 S. Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach, FL 33401. Culley's MeadowWood Funeral Home, Riggins Road Chapel, is handling arrangements (850-877-8191). He was a good-natured, thoughtful man, who treated people with respect and avoided criticism, always quick to help others in need. Rey was born November 24, 1912, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, of two immigrants from Sweden, and loved his Swedish heritage. He earned a bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1934, and received a fellowship to study at the Boeing School of Aeronautics for advanced flight engineering training. He began his career working for United Airlines on the snowy airport runways of Iowa City, Iowa. Dorothy "Dot" Richardson and Rey married in 1939. Rey was awarded a prestigious Sloan Fellowship to MIT and received a Master of Science degree in Business and Engineering Administration from MIT in 1942. He joined Pratt and Whitney Aircraft in Hartford, Connecticut, and Rey rose to become their lead person in the development of the engines for the U-2 spy plane, at that time the highest of top secrets. Years later it was the U-2 that confirmed the presence of Soviet missiles on Cuban soil. In 1956, he and Dorothy moved to Los Angeles where he was the head of the West Coast Sales and Service division of Pratt and Whitney. They moved to Palm Beach, Florida, in 1961, where he helped to develop Pratt and Whitney's leading Research and Development operation in West Palm Beach. After retiring in 1975, he joined Earl Hollis Realty as a commercial real estate agent, a second career that he enjoyed for its analytical challenge. He was active as an elder, deacon and trustee in First Presbyterian Church, Encino, California, and First Presbyterian Church of West Palm Beach. His beloved wife, Dorothy Richardson Caleen, died in 1999 after 60 years of marriage. At the age of 87, in 2000, he married his second wife Kathryn "Faye" Gosman, who died in 2006. He spent the last two years of his life in Tallahassee. Rey had a generous heart and will be sorely missed by his family and friends. Rey is survived by his daughter, Barbara Caleen Hansen of Treasure Island, Florida, and son, Reynold Laurence Caleen Jr. of Tallahassee; grandchildren, David Hansen, Rick Caleen, Mike Caleen, Chris Caleen and Katie Caleen Lyons; and great-grandchildren, Sarah, Corey, Mackenzie, Logan and Kelsey Caleen, and Caleb Lyons.