Gerald A. "Jerry" Ferguson Jr.

FERGUSON, Gerald A. Jr. "Jerry" 78, of Basking Ridge, NJ, passed away on Monday, Dec. 31, 2007. Arrangements were private under the direction of the Gray Funeral Home, Westfield, NJ. Mr. Ferguson was born on Nov. 3, 1929, in Bradenton, FL, to Gerald A. Ferguson and Velsey Palmer Ferguson and spent his early years in St. Petersburg, where he was active in the Boy Scouts, attaining the rank of Eagle Scout. He resided in Murray Hill, NJ for more than 10 years before moving his family to Westfield, where he resided for more than 40 years. He was awarded a 4 year scholarship to Culver Military Academy in Culver, IN, where he graduated in 1946. He received a BS degree in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1950, and an MS degree in electrical engineering from the University of New Mexico in 1955. While at MIT, Mr. Ferguson was a member of the ROTC, and in June of 1950, he become commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Air Force. In February, 1952, during the Korean War, he was called to active duty, serving 4 years at Kirtland AFB, in Albuquerque, NM. In 1950, he joined Long Lines, Inc. a division of AT&T, as an electrical engineer. After his military service, he returned to Long Lines in 1955, before transferring a year later to Bell Laboratories. He worked primarily in Murray Hill, and Holmdel, NJ, until his retirement in 1997, after 47 years of service. During his tenure at Bell Labs, he worked on various projects including missile guidance systems and the first Telstar Communications Satellite. He helped design repeaters for the undersea cable division of AT&T and made several trans-Atlantic voyages on the cable ship C. S. Long Lines. He was awarded several patents as a Bell Labs employee. He was a connoisseur of classical music, an accomplished photographer, and an animal and nature enthusiast who enjoyed bird-watching. He is survived by his son, Gerald A. "Jay" Ferguson III, and daughter in law Xiao Hua Wang, of Yardley, PA; his daughter, Gillean Dembiec, and son in law, J. R.; and 3 grandchildren, Olivia, Chad, and Owen, all of Westfield; and his former wife, Pamelyn Bush, of Holland Twp. Donations in his memory may be made to the National Parkinson Foundation, Inc., Office of Development, 1501 NW 9th Ave/Bob Hope Road, Miami, FL, 33136-1494, or online at www.parkinson.org.