Joseph A. Fischer ’48

Joe Fischer died Feb. 18, 2008. He was 85.

Joe's father died when Joe was 7, and Joe was admitted to an orphanage, Girard College, in Philadelphia. He graduated in 1940 and went to work for GE for two years. Then he volunteered for the Army Engineers and was sent to Princeton for the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP). This was followed by reassignment to the 106th Infantry Division as a combat engineer. In the Battle of the Bulge, Joe was injured and was hospitalized for seven months.

After a medical discharge, he returned to Princeton, where he became the first president of the Engineering Council and was a member of the Undergraduate Council. He was in Key and Seal and earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering.

His professional career was with New Jersey's Public Service Electric and Gas Co. until his retirement in 1988. He received the Silver Beaver Award for longtime service to the Boy Scouts of America. He was an avid tennis player.

Our condolences go to his widow, Irene, and son Joseph '73. He was a loyal '48er and son of Old Nassau.