Henry Douglas Ruppel

He was born Sept. 10, 1923, in Twin Bridges, Mont., the first of the five children of Henry and Gladys Thompson Ruppel.

He married the love of his life, Norma Jean Hand of Bentley, Kan., Dec. 15, 1946. Their marriage lasted for 58 years until her passing in 2005. They were the parents of four children.

Ruppel was a member of the Class of 1947 of the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., which graduated in 1946 in an accelerated program for wartime. He earned a master’s degree in civil engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y., in 1950, while he was in the Navy.

He and his three brothers, Edward, Robert and Byron Ruppel, were all commissioned officers in the U.S. Navy.

The elder Ruppel was on active duty in the Navy from 1946 to 1954, including service aboard the heavy cruiser USS Fall River, and as a public works officer in the Civil Engineer Corps at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii, and Naval Air Station, Hutchinson, Kan.

Returning to civilian life, he became a partner in Hefling Engineering Company, which specialized in municipal projects, in Hutchinson. He continued to serve in the United States Naval Reserve and eventually retired at the rank of commander.

In 1957 he began a thirty-year career with Westinghouse Electric Corp., most of it in the nuclear power industry, five years of it with C.W. Blakeslee, then a Westinghouse subsidiary in the prestressed concrete business.

His first position with Westinghouse was Shift Supervisor, A1W Operations and Construction, at the Naval Reactor Facility at the National Reactor Testing Station, now known as the Idaho National Laboratory, located in the desert west of Idaho Falls, Idaho.

Westinghouse assignments subsequently took him and his family to Newport News, Va., where he worked on the power plant for the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise; Pittsburgh, Pa., twice; Idaho Falls for a second time; New Haven, Conn.; and Rochelle, Ill.

Leading to his retirement in January 1987, he was General Manager, Nuclear Service Division, from September 1976 to August 1982, and finally General Manager, Electro-Mechanical Division, from August 1982, both positions at Westinghouse Water Reactor Divisions in Pittsburgh.

In retirement in Escondido, he consulted for the nuclear power industry.

Ruppel was a Master Mason for 55 years. He was Master of Consuelo Lodge No. 325 in Escondido three times and received the Masons’ highest award in California, the Hiram Award, in 2009.

He is survived by his children, George Ruppel of Los Angeles, Calif., Peter (Reiko) Ruppel of South Pasadena, Calif., Susan (Robin) Bray of Charlotte, N.C., and William Ruppel of Los Angeles, Calif.; four grandsons, Daniel Bray of New York, N.Y., John Bray of Charlotte, N.C., Kurt Ruppel of San Francisco, Calif., and Max Ruppel of South Pasadena, Calif.; brother Robert Ruppel of Gardnerville, Nev.; and sister Barbara Carlisle of Felton, Calif.

In addition to his wife, he was preceded in death by his brothers Edward and Byron Ruppel.

A memorial service will be held Aug. 23 at 11:00 a.m. in the chapel at McLeod Mortuary, 1919 East Valley Parkway, Escondido. Public viewing is from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m., and a reception at McLeod Mortuary will follow the service at 12:00 noon. Interment will be in the Twin Bridges, Mont., cemetery, date to be determined.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, P.O. Box 131470, San Diego, CA 92170-7001, telephone 619-767-6800.

Arrangements under the direction of McLeod Mortuary, Escondido, CA.