Vernon Lee Bell Jr.

Dr. Vernon "Bud" L. Bell Jr., 82, passed away at home on February 9, 2010, from complications of surgery after a fall. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska, June 2, 1927; son of Vernon Lee Bell, Sr., and Lucille Doss Bell. He served in the U.S. Navy, 1945-46. He received his PhD in Chemistry from the University of Nebraska in 1958. He retired in 1985 after 23 years as a Senior Scientist with Langley Research Center (NASA) in Langley AFB, VA. His accomplishments included many patents and work on the Space Shuttle project.

Bud enjoyed many years of traveling and sailing with family and friends. He loved to spend time tinkering on his Tartan sailboats, traveling to the Bahamas, Virgin Islands, and sailing on his beloved Chesapeake Bay. He was actively involved in the Coast Guard Auxiliary and Seaford Yacht Club in Yorktown, Va. Bud will be remembered as fun-loving and a devoted husband and father.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Joanne Bell; daughter Jan Dunn and husband Mike of Pittsboro, NC, and Carolyn Vasta and husband Paul and grandson, Paul Michael of Salem, OR; and brother-in-law, Charles Bliss and wife Joan of Jacksonville, FL.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday, February 18, 2010, at 2:00 p.m. at Sunrise of Cary, 1206 W. Chatham Street, Cary, NC. Another celebration of his life will be held at a later date in the Yorktown, Virginia area, his residence of 47 years.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Hospice of Wake County, Inc., 250 Hospice Circle, Raleigh, NC 27607 (http://www.hospiceofwake.org/) or the American Diabetes Association , P.O. Box 11454, Alexandria, VA 22312 (http://www.diabetes.org/).

Online condolences may be made to www.brownwynnecary.com.