Warren Leroy Larson

Warren Leroy Larson, 85, died June 14, 2009 at Covenant Village in Cromwell, Connecticut following a series of illnesses. Birth: Warren was born in Hupeh Province in Kingchow, China on October 14, 1923 while his parents, the late Rev Leonard Larson and Mrs. Alice Bloomgren Larson, were serving as missionaries for the Evangelical Covenant Church. He was the second of seven children. Life: Following his undergraduate education at Missouri School of Mines in Rolla, Missouri, Warren was commissioned into the Navy as an officer in 1944 and was later sent to Boston Navy yard. It was during his service in Boston that he met his wife, Priscilla Rogers, at the Servicemen's Center at Tremont Temple Baptist Church, and they were married on June 21, 1947. They would have been married 63 years on June 21st. Warren attended the University of Michigan for special navigation programs and obtained his Masters and Doctorate degrees at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. As a metallurgical engineer, Warren worked in R&D at Dow Chemical Company in Michigan and later at Nuclear Metals and Supercon in the greater Boston area. Warren was one of two metallurgists who received the patents on the superconducting wire used in MRI technology. Prior to moving to Cromwell in 2001, Warren and Priscilla lived in Lexington, Massachusetts for 45 years, where they raised their family. Special Loves/Interests: After his Lord, family and friends, music was Warren's passion and he had a beautiful tenor voice which he shared all of his life by participating in many choirs and choral groups. Bach's organ music often brought him to tears. He enjoyed walking, riding his bike on Martha's Vineyard, playing tennis, ping pong was a ping pong champ in High School, and visiting with people. Other interests were astronomy, geography and map reading. Warren found joy in the very simple things of life and was enthusiastic about every place he visited, however humble and small. Special highlights of his life were traveling to Sweden to see the places of his ancestry, and to Germany to see the famous organs and the Passion Play at Oberammergau. Family Members: Mr. Larson is survived by his wife Priscilla, three children, David Larson, wife Alicia Glastonbury CT, Wendy Benkley husband Bruce, Green Bay, WI, and Karen Turner husband Corey, Charleston, SC, and six grandchildren: Christina James, husband Trevor, Grayslake, Illinois, David Benkley, wife Lacy, Billings, MT, Daniel Larson, Newport, RI, Jeffrey Larson, NYC, Morgan Turner and Anna Rowan Turner, and three great grandchildren, Noah James, Grace James and Eden Benkley. Siblings: Muriel Floyd Forsberg, of Overland Park, Kansas, Phyllis Melvin Johnson, of Fort Worth, TX, Eugene Ellen Rose Larson, of Knoxville, TN, Alyce Rev James Hawkinson of White Bear Lake, MN, also, numerous nieces and nephews. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by two brothers, Leonard Larson and Rev. Quentin Dusty Larson, and a nephew, Brad Larson. The memorial celebration service will be held at the Bethany Covenant Church in Berlin, CT on June 19, 2009 at 11:00 AM. This will be followed by a luncheon. Burial will be private. Memorials may be donated to any of the following: The Reverend and Mrs. Leonard J. Larson Scholarship Fund which is for seminary students at North Park University in Chicago, Illinois Bethany Covenant Church, Berlin, CT Covenant Benevolent Fund – Covenant Village of Cromwell, CT.