Edwin Parssinen

Sedona, Ariz. - Edwin John Parssinen, of Sedona, Ariz., formerly of Mystic, and Sandwich, Mass., died on July 18, 2005 at the age of 86.

Born Jan. 19, 1919, he was a graduate of Northeastern University in 1942, and Navy radar training schools at Cornell, Harvard and MIT, 1942-1943, he was commissioned as an ensign in the U.S. Navy in 1942. He spent 30 months in active sea duty as radar officer aboard the light cruiser, USS Columbia, surviving the battles of Empress Augusta Bay and Leyte Gulf, along with three Kamikaze attacks in Lingayan Gulf, Philippines. In 1947, he began a distinguished career as a physicist at the Naval Underwater Sound Laboratory, New London, until his retirement in 1974, where he was Head of the Sonar Transducer Division from 1962-1974. He later went on to consult for McLaughlin Research Corp., Tracor, Inc., Planning Systems Incorporated and Kildare Corporation. He became one of the world's foremost experts on sonar transducers. He was the inventor of the sonar projector elements used in the U.S. Navy's standard SQS-53C surface ship sonar, and in the BQQ-5 submarine sonar. He was also instrumental in the development of the conformal hydrophone receiver arrays used on submarines.

In his retirement he enjoyed skiing, golf and hiking with his dogs in the Arizona wilderness outside his home. He was a long-time member and past president of the Thames Ski Club where he made many lifelong friends.

He was predeceased by his wife, Diane Walsh, in 2001.

He is survived by two sons, Eric Parssinen, of Dallas, Texas, and Wayne Parssinen, of Sedona, Ariz.; two daughters, Nancy Vespoli, of Guilford, and Donna Parssinen, of Frankfurt, Germany; and four grandchildren.

A funeral service will be held at Greenman Memorial Chapel at the Elm Grove Cemetery, 197 Greenmanville Ave., Mystic, on July 29 at 2 p.m. Immediately following the service will be the interment of Ed and wife, Diane.

Contributions in their memory may be made to the American Lyme Disease Foundation, 293 Route 100, Ste. 204, Somers, NY 10589.