Joseph Delta Lafleur, Jr.

Joseph Delta Lafleur, Jr. died peacefully on November 13, 2023, at Asbury Retirement Community, Gaithersburg, Maryland. Joseph (JD or Joe) was born on December 3, 1929, to Susie Dyer and Joseph Delta Lafleur, in Ville Platte, Louisiana. He had two brothers, Alonzo Dyer Lafleur and Steve Lafleur. Joe is survived by: Dianne Lafleur, David Reid Lafleur, Barbara Susan Lafleur (Chuck Morrison), Joseph Delta Lafleur, III (Kathleen), and three grandchildren, Kere Anne Blair, Kristen Dianne Blair, and Hana Fleur Morrison. He is also survived by his loving wife of 20 years, Janet Cope, and her son, David Cope (Andrea).

With his brother Alonzo Dyer, JD delivered newspapers and became an Eagle Scout. After graduating from Ville Platte High in 1946, he attended LSU until he was old enough to receive a commission to West Point. Joe graduated from West Point, Military Engineering in 1951, and married Joan Kere Reid the next day. He served in the Army Corp of Engineers in Korea for three campaigns, first as a platoon leader and later as company commander, earning a Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service in combat. After the war, he was stationed in Okinawa where he served in a supervisory capacity in various large construction projects.

He received his MS Civil Engineering from Iowa State College, 1956, and PhD Mechanical Engineering from Catholic University, 1960. In Fort Belvoir, VA, Joe had a role in the initial startup of the first Army Package Power Reactor (APPR-1), the first nuclear reactor to provide electrical power to a power grid. He was an inspector and transport supervisor for other reactors installed in Greenland, Alaska, and Arctic military bases. At one point, he and his team were “lost without radio communications” in a snowstorm for two weeks in the North Pole.

Joe was a leader in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. After leaving the Army, he worked for the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in the Space Nuclear System Division, where he contributed to the development of the first operational nuclear reactor launched into space in 1965 under the Space Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP) program. Later designs derived from the SNAP program were incorporated in reactors used for powering the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Packages (ALSEP) left on the lunar surface by astronauts in the 1970’s for continuing monitoring and experimentation.

The Louisiana State House of Representatives recognized him as a noteworthy contributor for scientific research and development.

In 1970, he was appointed as Scientific Attache for the Non-NATO countries to the US Embassy in Paris, France, where he established relations and exchange programs for nuclear safety information with countries in Europe, the Middle East, and the Far East. As Assistant Director of International Cooperation for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), he made agreements with China for exchanges and collaborative activities in the field of nuclear safety.

Throughout his career, he presented papers to the Astronomical Society, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the American Nuclear Society (ANS), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as well as reporting and testimony to the US Congress, and the President’s Commission on the Accident at Three-Mile Island. He gave tours of Three-Mile Island to nuclear scientists from all over the world, then invited them back to his home.

Joe enjoyed woodwork, building his projects and being an engineer. He was always humming and told very corny jokes very well. He restored an 1809 log cabin, built his dream home in Darnestown, and chopped the wood to heat it. At the age of 68, he built a cabin in WV. He loved to entertain friends with good food and good wine; he loved people, family, music, and the natural world. Most of all, he shared his joy with one and all.

A Celebration of Life Memorial Service will be held on Dec. 2 at 1:00 PM at Asbury’s Parkview Building (211 Russell Ave) in the Guild Chapel room, followed by a reception in the Club Room. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to the Alzheimer's Association (www.alz.org) or the Asbury Methodist Village Benevolent Care Fund.