Paul Frederick Zweifel

1929 - 2017

Paul Frederick Zweifel
June 21. 1929 -
February 12, 2017
Paul Frederick Zweifel, 87, of Blacksburg, VA passes away on Sunday, February 12, 2017. Born in New York, NY on June 21, 1929 to Dorothy and Frederick Zweifel. His family later moved to Spartanburg, SC where he attended Spartanburg, SC where he attended the college of his choice, Carnegie-Melon University. There he was suite mates with Josh Nash, whose life story was the basis for the biography and film 'A Beautiful Mind'. Following his undergraduate studies, he received his PhD in Physics from Duke University. His passion for sports led him to be a sports journalist at the Durham Sun Newspaper, where he interviewed athletes such as Willie Mays. In the next chapter of his life, he began his ten year professorship at the University of Michigan in Nuclear Engineering. There he met his wife of fifty years, Kathleen Zweifel. In 1968, they moved to Blacksburg, VA where he became a Professor of Physics at Virginia Tech and was soon appointed University Distinguished Professor. While at Virginia Tech, he was awarded the E. O. Lawrence Medal by the United States Government in 1972 and the Guggenheim Fellowship in 1975. In 1963 he founded the 'Blacksburg Meeting' which brings together experts in his field from all over the world. This meeting continues to meet every two years in varied locations as Blacksburg, Arizona, China, Brazil, and Sweden. One of the highlights of his life was his sabbatical in Florence, Italy with his family, where he became the Choir Director of the American Church in Florence and built lifelong friendships. He was retired from Virginia Tech in 1996 and, in collaboration with his wife Kathy, took advantage of his musical and linguistic attributes to set up a business providing subtitles for opera companies across the United States. Throughout his life, Paul continued his passions for opera, sports, bridge, travel and most importantly his beloved family. He loved to watch his grandchildren participate in their varied activities from soccer, musical performances, football, wrestling, lacrosse, and tennis. He passed his love for all Virginia Tech Sports onto his family members. As we watched the Hokies beat UVA in double OT on Sunday we knew he would have been proud of his Hokies.
He is survived by his wife, Kathleen McKay Zweifel; sister, Sylvia Rodgers; daughter, Christen (Miles) Whitten; sons, Feza (Heather) Zweifel and Evan (Kelly) Zweifel; daughter, Katie Clements; grandchildren, Jimmy, Sarah, and Mac Whitten, Zachary and Nicholas Clements, Bailey, and Spencer Zweifel, and beloved dog, Frodo.
A memorial service will be held at Christ Episcopal Church, where Paul was a long time member.
The service will be at 1pm on Saturday, February 18, 2017 with the Rev. Scott West officiating. A reception will follow in Parish Hall. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his memory to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or Doctors Without Borders.
Mr. Zweifel attended his 71st reunion with Spartanburg High School Class of 1945 in July of 2016.