Leonard Keith Sisterson

Leonard Keith Sisterson, 76, of Eastham, Massachusetts, loving husband of Janet (Brownlee) Sisterson, passed away peacefully on May 3rd, 2018, in Brewster, MA. Born in Corbridge, England, the son of the late Leonard and Sarah (Watson) Sisterson, Keith grew up in Tynemouth and Gravesend, England, before moving to the United States in 1968 to work in the Harvard University Physics Department.

Keith lived the majority of his adult life in Lexington, MA, before spending the past 13 years full–time in Eastham. He had an MA in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge, England, Class of 1963, and received his Ph.D. in Nuclear Physics from Imperial College of Science and Technology in London in 1967, where he met Janet, who was in the same doctoral program.

Keith spent 40 years in signal processing and machine intelligence at a number of organizations, including Harvard University, Instron and 17 years at M.I.T Lincoln Lab, retiring in 2007. Post-retirement he became the President of GlobalWare Corporation U.S. for six years before founding Cape Cod Music Apps as the President and Chief Technical Officer in 2012.

Keith was a lover of classical music and the Boston and Cape Cod symphonies. He played the piano most of his adult life, taking lessons for the last 7 years. He enjoyed sailing and was always looking for crew to help sail his 19-foot West Wight Potter Tyne. He and Janet also relished the experience of tall ship sailing cruises in the Caribbean. Keith was an amateur vintner and enjoyed making new friends through his local wine group. In his younger days, Keith was an avid camper, hiker, cross-country skier, beer brewer and hockey parent.

He was actively involved in his community in several capacities including Nauset Newcomers, Neighborhood Watch Captain, a member of the Orleans Yacht Club, and President of the Nauset Light Preservation Society.

Keith is survived by his wife of 52 years, Janet Sisterson, his brother David Sisterson of Gravesend, Kent, his aunt Margaret McLelland of Gravesend, Kent, his beloved children, Jim Sisterson and his wife Ellen, of Sharon, MA, and Mark Sisterson and his wife Loree, of Clovis, CA, and three grand-children, Rylie, Bailey and Rafi, as well as many nieces and nephews.

His family will receive friends on Tuesday, May 8th, from 10am to 11am, followed by a celebration of life at Nickerson Funeral Home, 77 Eldredge Park Way, Orleans, MA 02653. Interment will follow in Evergreen Cemetery, Eastham, MA, followed by a luncheon at the family home in Eastham.

Memorial donations may be made to the Nauset Light Preservation Society, PO Box 941, Eastham, MA 02642. For online condolences, please visit www.nickersonfunerals.com