Manfred W. Slack

Manfred was born in West Virginia, the older of two brothers to Wyatt and Clara Slack on He August 7th, 1943. He was raised in a small community, on the banks of the Kanawha River, called Boomer where he graduated high school. Manfred enlisted in the Navy and was stationed in Norfolk where he served his 4 years as an electronics technician.

During his life he was known to be an unwavering proponent of what he believed to be right and in the best interest of his country, his family, and humanity in general. In 1964 he married Earlene Vance of Gauley Bridge, and six years later had a son, Wyatt. They were married for 57 years.

After four years in the Navy, he attended West Virginia Tech where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. Upon graduation he took a position, and what would turn into a very interesting and productive career, at Dahlgren Naval Warfare Center in Research and Development. Manfred was a self-admitted workaholic and enthralled himself into every project he was involved with and put everything he had into it, until he felt he was more interested and needed in another. He worked on a variety of projects at Dahlgren involving aircraft, military ships, submarines, and finally intelligence systems, some of you would recognize his work by name. Towards the end of his career there he became more involved in the operational side of the Navy while simultaneously leading the R& D study aimed at identifying ways to improve timeliness of intelligence being delivered to the fleet. During this time, he worked with COMFIFTH FLEET to collect data during operation Desert Storm to demonstrate the potential value that collected data could be to the operational fleet. He received Pentagon issued medal recognizing him and others for “substantial contributions to the success of the operations while enduring many of the same hazards and conditions faced by military personnel”. After the war, he briefed many “Flags” including COMSIXTH FLEET on the results of the study as well as his recommendations. COMSIXTH FLEET, VADM Joseph Lopez, supported one of his recommendations and gave him authority to install an USAF developed system onto Navy ships to evaluate its value to the Navy. This effort helped lead the Navy to joining with the other military branches to develop a Joint Services project called Integrated Broadcast Services (IBS).The Navy CNO was identified as the Joint Executive Agent for this project. Based on recommendations from COMSIXTH FLEET and a USAF command, CNO invited him to join their team (almost unheard of for a civilian) based on his experience and knowledge. This system is now installed on every one of the Navy’s Theater Ballistic Missile ships as well as other highly valued assets. Before finally retiring, Manfred, with the help of members from other branch R&D organizations spear headed an effort to develop a much cheaper and efficient IT project to replace or compliment the initial IBS capability. Manfred oversaw and helped install this on 100 Navy ships before retiring.

Upon retiring from the Navy Manfred worked for a few different contractors in an advisory capacity. He spent the rest of his days working with his son to build an electrical contracting business here in the area. He did this until he was no longer able.

Manfred was without a doubt, the caretaker of his entire extended family and went out of his way to assist anyone he thought he could help. He loved an underdog and always took up for people who most would not.

Manfred is survived by his beloved wife Earlene: his brother Rommel: his son and daughter in law Wyatt and Sherry: his grandchildren Summer and Wade. A memorial service will be held on Friday January 6th, 2023, at 7:00 p.m., at Mullins & Thompson Funeral home in Fredericksburg, Va. The family will receive friends from 6:00-7:00pm prior to the service.

In lieu of flowers, the family request donations be made to Mary Washington Hospice, 2300 Fall Hill Ave. Suite 401, Fredericksburg, VA 22401