Robert Alexander Arrison, Jr.

Robert Alexander Arrison, Jr.'s Obituary as published in The Darien Times, Thursday, September 23, 2004:

 Robert Alexander Arrison Jr., Darien resident for 34 years, died Saturday, Sept. 18, at his home.  He was 79.

Born June 14, 1925, in Philadelphia, he was the son of the late Robert A. Arrison and Rhandena Christian Arrison.
Mr. Arrison graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with bachelor's and master's degrees in electronic engineering. He was a member of the Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity, and was appointed to the Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa Nu and Sigma Xi honor societies.
He also served in the United States Navy during and after World War II as a radio operator on a minesweeper in the Pacific.
Mr. Arrison spend most of his career working in the development and manufacturing of medical imaging technology, beginning with General Electic's [sic] X-ray division. He moved to Wellesley, Mass., to become vice president of engineering for Keleket X-ray Corp., and to Lloyd Harbor, Long Island, where he was also vice president of Veeco (Vacuum Electronics Corp.)
In 1966 he became vice president and general manager of the Nuclear Ultrasound and Clinical Laboratory divisions of Picker X-ray Corp., first in Cleveland and later in North Branford, and served on Picker's Board of Directors. In the last eight years of his career, Mr. Arrison also served as senior vice president of operations for North American Philips Corporation's Philips Medical Systems division in Shelton, manufacturing medical imaging technologies such as ultrasound and magnetic resonant imaging (MRI).
He also held several patents.
Mr. Arrison shared his love of sailing with friends and family, and especially enjoyed cruising the Maine coast and racing to Bermuda. He was a member of the Noroton Yacht Club and the New York Yacht Club. He built more than 250 boat half-models for members of the Noroton Yacht Club, many of them now on display in the club's model room recently named in his honor. He was a longtime member of the Country Club of Darien where he played tennis and paddle tennis, as well as the Wee Burn Country Club where he enjoyed playing competitive duplicate bridge. He was also a member of the Senior Men's Association and the Darien Community Association.
Mr. Arrison was a member of the Noroton Presbyterian Church. He served as a deacon and an elder.
Locally, he served on the Darien Representative Town Meeting, the Republican Town Committee, and the Darien Land Trust.
Mr. Arrison is survived by his wife of 55 years, Dorothy Thompson Arrison; a daughter, Janet Arrison Spedden of Clarksville, Md.; three sons, Robert Thompson Arrison of Providence, R.I.[sic]; John Gilmore Arrison of Belfast, Maine, and James Alexander Arrison of Wilmore, Ky.; a brother, Frank Christian Arrison of Newtown, Pa; five grandchildren; and three neices and three nephews.
He was predeceased by his sister, Rhandena Arrison Goode, and by his infant daughter, Jane Arrison. A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 9, at Noroton Presbyterian Church.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to Noroton Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 3401, Darien, CT 06820; or to Person To Person, 1864 Post Road, Darien, CT 06820.