George Francis Munsch, W5VPQ, age 77, died on Wednesday, October 31, 2012. He was born in Refugio, Texas and attended Saint Mary’s University in San Antonio.He worked at Southwest Research Institute for 31 years, retiring as a Principal Scientist. While there he was the go-to person for the hard problems. Even if he didn’t know the answer, he had the insight and perspective on how to solve it. And in addition to his brilliance, he was also a mentor, always willing to share his knowledge and lifting the expertise of everyone around him.
Even in retirement, he was very active as a consultant, and recognized as an expert in radio noise mitigation. He co-authored the leading text on the subject, and made many trips around the world solving problems for clients. Ham radio was a major thread running through his life. Through it he met his wife Ella, and they enjoyed 52 devoted years together. She and their two sons, Randy and David, were the joy of his life.
Ham radio was also the source of a large number of good friends, many of which consider him a ham’s ham. He was a pioneer in one of its technologies and served on an advisory committee setting up national standards. But his relationships with people were even more important than technology, and he will be missed by many people worldwide. He is survived by a son Randy, a grandson Randall, and two great grandchildren.
