John N. Chirigos

John Nicholas Chirigos, 84, of Monroeville, formerly of Churchill, a retired engineer from Westinghouse, died of cancer Sunday, Sept. 25, 2011. John recently resided with his daughter, Claudia Farmer. The son of Greek immigrants, John was raised in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh before moving to Squirrel Hill. Upon graduating from Schenley High School in 1945, John went into officer's candidate school and achieved the rank of second lieutenant at the age of 18 while serving in Japan. After World War II, he enrolled at Carnegie Tech and studied metallurgy. He attained his bachelor of science degree and went on to earn his PhD also at Carnegie Tech. Dr. Chirigos spent his entire 33 year career at Westinghouse, mostly at the Bettis Atomic Power Labs in West Mifflin and the Nuclear Center in Monroeville. In Shippensburg, he was part of a team of scientists that worked on and developed the world's first nuclear reactor. His work took him to France, England and China. John's interests included his family, stamp collecting, cooking, reading history books and watching football, especially the Steelers. He attended church regularly and sang in the choir. While at Carnegie Tech, he met his beloved wife of 57 years, the late Marian (Siahos) Chirigos. John was the loving father of Nicholas Chirigos, of Lutherville, Md., and Claudia (George) Farmer, of Wilkins Township; dear grandfather of George N. Farmer, of Wilkins Township, and John N. Chirigos, of Ellicott City, Md.; brother of Michael Chirigos, of Squirrel Hill; also survived by cousins, nieces and nephews. Friends are welcome from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday and 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at PATRICK T. LANIGAN FUNERAL HOME, 700 Linden Ave., East Pittsburgh 412-824-8800, where a Trisagion will be prayed at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Additional viewing will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday in the Presentation of Christ Greek Orthodox Church (Ypapanti), where a funeral service will follow at 11 a.m. Burial with military honors will follow at William Penn Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to Ypapanti, P.O. Box J., East Pittsburgh, PA 151112. www.laniganfuneralhome.com.