Thomas Griswold

Griswold, Thomas
Thomas William Griswold made a peaceful transition on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 following eight months of health battles. For eighty years, we were distracted by Tom's intellectual power and curiosity, his understanding of the world through physics, and his unexpected knowledge of art (unless you knew his mom) and music (Bach and Gilbert and Sullivan were favorites). We hadn't noticed the strength and determination these last months revealed. His was a life of the mind; we found it was also a life of kindness and charm. In the end, we saw that his intellect was surpassed by his courage: he taught us that dignity has nothing to do with hospital gowns. Tom was born in Los Angeles on July 29, 1925 to Robert Raymond and Lillian Mae Huntley Griswold. The third of three sons, he grew up in the depression, hearing tales of his father's experiences in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Brothers Frank and Tom built (and Bob blew up) model airplanes together, and rode bikes through various neighborhoods in Los Angeles and later San Francisco as their father pursued a successful career in sales of business systems. In the mid-thirties, the boys were joined by a sister, Sue. Tom graduated from Lowell High School in 1943, and at 17 enlisted in the army. He memorized the eye chart while in line, then passed the exam with his glasses off. Tom was assigned to the ASTP "program for brains" at Cal Tech. The Battle of the Bulge resulted in such high casualties for the Allies that the program was terminated in order to provide replacements. A week before being shipped out following basic training in Alabama, Tom was hospitalized with German measles. He was separated from his unit which was wiped out in France. Tom joined a unit in Patton's army and was wounded twice. While he was recuperating in the UK from a shrapnel wound in his forearm, Tom's unit fought on the continent and was destroyed. Tom earned two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star with a cluster. He always brushed off these medals, saying "it was just a scratch." Luckily, his family is in charge of this obituary. Tom attended UC Berkeley on the GI Bill and earned his B.S. in Physics in 1949, graduating Summa Cum Laude, and being elected to Phi Beta Kappa (in his junior year) and Sigma Xi. After graduation, he married Mary Lee Denman. They made their home in Berkeley as he earned his Ph.D. in Physics from Cal in 1953. Tom accepted a position in the Semiconductor Research program (diodes and transistors) of Hughes Aircraft, and they moved to Los Angeles and raised a family. Mary Lee went to work in Nuclear Medicine Research at UCLA, and Tom joined start-up venture Continental Device Corporation, which was acquired by Teledyne in the early 1970's. Tom worked at Semtech Corporation before joining JPL and Cal Tech in the later 70's, where he worked on the VLSI program for the Pioneer Deep Space Satellite, and sometimes taught, until he retired in 1989. Having separated amicably from Mary Lee, Tom married Cory Mason Griswold in the year of his retirement. Tom leaves behind a proud and sad group of family members, friends, and professionals who supported, and was ultimately awed by, Tom in his last months. The group includes former wife and good friend Mary Lee; daughter and husband Kris and Chris; son Bill, Jennifer, and grandkids Max and Finn: brother Bob and Holly; sister Sue and John; and a large extended family (including dog Yodi) and friends who have been cheering from the sidelines. To Tom's tremendous team of doctors, nurses, and professionals at St. John's Hospital and Vitas hospice, we extend our profound gratitude for their knowledge, determination, and understanding. We also thank Melvin, who gave his heart along with skilled medical care and compassion for the past eight months. Tom was preceded in death by his parents, Cory, brother Frank, and niece Krista. We picture their happy reunion party as we plan our celebration of Tom's life on Saturday, May 6, 2006 at The Little Chapel of the Dawn in Santa Monica. For those who would like to make donations, pleas91010