Warden John Newell Jr. ’56

John Newell died Aug. 21, 2003, in Richardson, Tex., after a long battle with heart disease.

John came to Princeton from the public high school of Alpine, Tex., a small town in the southwest Texas desert, where he was the valedictorian of his class. At Princeton, John studied electrical engineering. He played trumpet in the marching and concert bands, and was a member of Terrace Club.

John was the son of W. John Newell Sr. '29, and the brother of Tom Van Auken '57.

Midway through his junior year, John married his high school girlfriend, Imajean Gray, left Princeton and continued his studies of electrical engineering at the U. of Texas, graduating in 1956.

After graduation, John joined Chance-Vought Aircraft in Grand Prairie, Tex. He remained with the firm 40 years as it went through various mergers, acquisitions, and sales. He retired in 1996 from Lockheed Martin Vought Systems as director of engineering systems. He was passionate about music, electronic gizmos, good grammar, and strong writing.

John is survived by his second wife, Helen Tweed Newell; six children; four stepchildren; two grandchildren; and six step-grandchildren.

The Class of 1956