Roger S. Walen

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution announces with great sorrow the death of retiree Roger S. Walen on November 24, 2012, at Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, Mass, after a brief illness.  He was 91.

Born in Gloucester, Mass, Roger was the son of the late Harry and Alice (Garland) Walen. He lived in Newton, and Lincoln, before moving to Marion in 1968.

Roger began his career at WHOI in 1969 as a research associate in the Geology and Geophysics Department.  In 1972, he transferred to the Ocean Engineering Department. He retired in 1977.

He was also formerly employed as an electrical engineer with Lincoln Labs, Mitre Corp., PAVE PAWS, and Thompson Engineering. He also served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II.

Roger was a member of St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church in Marion where he sang in the choir and volunteered at Damien’s Food Pantry in Wareham. He enjoyed gardening, boating, and spending time in his house in New Hampshire. He played the trumpet in the New Bedford Symphony during the 1970s.

Survivors include his wife Constance M. (McDonald) Walen; three daughters, Kate E. Lunt of Marion, Mass, Sarah K. Walen of Silver Plume, CO, and Nellie B. Filip and her husband Leon of North Conway, NH; two grandchildren, Andrew R. Lunt of Wareham, and Sophie M. Lunt of Marion.