Edward P. French

1924 - 2019

Edward P. French
Aug. 9, 1924 - Oct. 30, 2019
Resident of San Jose
Ed French, 95, died peacefully in his sleep on October 30th at his home. He was born in Boise, Idaho.
His college education was interrupted by WWII where he served in the Army Air Force, flying 24 combat missions over Germany. At war's end he returned to Boise State University and then transferred to Stanford. There he majored in Chemistry and Metallurgy and "minored" in choral music. He sang in the Memorial Church Choir where he met his future wife, Helene Perham.
The solar system and its exploration always fascinated Ed. In 1958 he joined Rockwell, the prime contractor for the Apollo project, and became part of the Space Sciences Laboratory, a group formed to explore advanced ideas in this new field. For 26 years he studied concepts such as ion rockets that have only recently been employed in spacecraft.
Ed and his wife retired at age 60 and moved to Santa Cruz. He co-owned a sailboat and sailed in Monterey Bay most Fridays. He served as a docent at Año Nuevo reserve and led tourists safely past the huge northern elephant seals. Both he and Helene took full advantage of the offerings at Cabrillo Community College and U.C. Santa Cruz. In 2013 he published his memoirs "Living in Interesting Times".
At 89, he and his wife of 65 years, moved to Carlton Senior Living in San Jose. Ed had an indomitable spirit and a passion for sailing, travel, music, singing, writing, reading, continuing education, wild animals and chess.
He is survived by his sister, Gerry Tyndall, daughter, Alison French, and grandchildren Nicholas, Anton, Aysha, Khoda, Calano and Zayna.


View the online memorial for Edward P. French