Philip Harry Gallo

Philip Harry Gallo, a resident of the Princeton area for more than 40 years, died September 19, 2023 after living with dementia for several years. He was 93.

A loving father and grandfather, Phil was a sports car enthusiast, sailor, and avid sports fan, proud of his Air Force service and work at the forefront of the computer industry from the 1960s into the 1990s. He loved building and fixing things, from renovating houses to working on musical
instruments.

Born in Longview, Wash., to Domnick and Arline [Fancher] Gallo on November 22, 1929, Phil grew up in West Linn, Ore., and graduated from Willamette University in Salem, Ore., before joining the Air Force where he was trained as a navigator and bombardier.

In the 1950s, he was heavily involved in sportscar rallies, developing a fondness for MGs, Austin-Healeys, and Porsches. He met his future wife, Jean Soracy, in New Jersey, and they lived in Morristown, Concord, Mass., Seattle, Chatsworth, Calif., Princeton, and London, raising their three children. He lost Jean to cancer in 1985.

Soon after moving to Princeton in 1976, he became a regular at New York Jets football games and Princeton Tigers basketball games. He was also a longtime fan of the UCLA Bruins and any team with Bill Walton in the lineup. 

While living in Chatsworth and Princeton, he was active in community organizations, and environmental and veterans’ groups. Princeton Elks Lodge named him Man of the Year in 2014.

After marrying Gale De Wispelaere in 1991 and retiring in 1992, he filled his days investing in the stock market. He became a sailor, boating in the waters around Barnegat Bay, N.J., as well as the Caribbean. Well-traveled in the U.S., England and Europe, he became a regular on cruise ships later in life.

He also had a longtime interest in food and loved a Beefeater martini followed by a good bottle of wine; he was as comfortable in fine dining establishments in New York City, California, and Europe as he was at his favorite local joint, the Tiger’s Tale.  

Phil spent his 90th birthday with friends and family at Windrows, where he resided from 2015 until 2022 before moving to Waterstone memory care in Stamford, Conn. 

He is survived by his three children and their spouses: Philip Jr. and Betsy Bergman of Stamford, Conn., Paul and Lori Gallo of Brooklin, Maine, and Leslie and Myrton Graham of Springfield, Vt.; five grandchildren and their families — Monica Gallo of Scottsdale, Ariz., and Laura Gallo of Phoenix, Ariz., Andrew and Stephanie Graham of Lake Worth, Fla., Derek and Lila Graham of Springfield, Vt., and Erin and Ryan Hobson of Waterboro, Maine — plus two great-grandchildren, Dominic Gallo and Claire Graham, and a special niece, Susan Best of Redondo Beach, Calif. He was predeceased by his wives, Jean Gallo (1928-1985) and Gale Gallo (1941-2014).

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Victor W. Laurie

Victor W. Laurie, 88, died on September 13, 2023. He was born in Columbia, South Carolina, on June 1, 1935, son of Victor H. Laurie and Kathleen Rice Laurie.

In 1950, at age 15, he entered the University of South Carolina in Columbia and graduated with a A.B. in  mathematics in 1953 and a B.S. in chemistry in 1954. During his time at the University of South Carolina, he received a number of awards and honors, including election to Phi Beta Kappa and selection for the Outstanding Senior Award. He was also active in several service organizations and served as president of the social fraternity Phi Kappa Sigma.

As a National Science Foundation Fellow, he studied at Harvard University and obtained his Ph.D. in physical chemistry for his research in the molecular spectroscopy group. For two years following, he joined the molecular spectroscopy laboratory at the National Bureau of Standards as a National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellow. In 1960, he joined the faculty of the chemistry department at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, as an assistant professor. In 1966, he went to the chemistry department of Princeton University in Princeton, NJ, as an associate professor and was promoted to full professor in 1971.

Through his research, he made numerous contributions to the use of spectroscopy to determine molecular structure and pioneered the use of microwave spectroscopy to make molecular
polarizability measurements.

He was a Fellow of the American Physical Society. He was also an Alfred P. Sloan Fellow in 1963-1967 and a John Simon Guggenhelm Fellow in 1971. He served terms as an editor for the Annual Review of Physical Chemistry and for the Journal of Chemical Physics.

In his later years, he was very active in computer education. He wrote many articles aimed at helping the average person to be a safer and more knowledgeable user of personal computers. He also created and ran several well-known websites containing his articles. For five years he wrote a column with computer tips at the very popular website called Gizmo’s Freeware. He was particularly interested in helping senior citizens make better use of computers. His many lectures to senior citizen groups were very popular and for some years he was a volunteer teacher of computer courses at a local senior center. His contributions to computer education for senior citizens received citations from the national organization SeniorNet and from the local government.

He was a generous contributor to numerous charities and endowed a variety of fellowships in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, where he served on the Board of Visitors for several years. He was designated Alumnus of the Month in March 2006.

He is survived by his wife of many years, Donna Komar Laurie, who is a former New York Times editor. He is also survived by a son William Laurie and a daughter Kathleen Kish from a previous marriage, a step-daughter Margaret Spicer, a step-son Charles Stempler, numerous grandchildren, step-grandchildren, great-grandchildren and step great-grandchildren, a half-sister Betsy Sivec, and a nephew August Sivec.

Arrangements are under the direction of Mather-Hodge Funeral Home, Princeton.

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Theodore L. Delbo

Theodore L. Delbo, 87, of Skillman passed away September 18 at the University Medical Center at Princeton. Born in Kulpmont, PA, he retired from the New Jersey State Museum where he was a carpenter for over 30 years. He was a member of St. Alphonsus RC Church in Hopewell where he was an usher, a charter member of the Knights of Columbus Hopewell Counsel 7103, and served in the Air Force.

Son of the late Theodore and Catherine Nemeth Delbo, husband of the late Joyce Delbo, he is survived by his children, Theodore W (Genevieve) Delbo, Anita (Mike) Christiansen, Joseph Delbo, and Lori Polakowski; two sisters, Valerie Slack and Eleanor Stout; grandchildren, Joseph (Ady) Delbo, Jaclyn Christiansen, Michaela Delbo, Rachael Delbo; and great-grandchildren, Holly Pyle and Lilly Pyle.

A mass of Christian burial will be celebrated on Wednesday, September 27, 11 a.m. at St. Alphonsus RC Church, Hopewell.  The burial will be on Thursday at Kulpmont, PA. 

In lieu of flowers, the family requests Mass Cards from St. Alphonsus Church (609) 466-0332 or the Knights of Columbus Hopewell Counsel 7103, PO Box 304, Hopewell, NJ 08525. Condolences are welcome at wilsonapple.com.

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John Beidler

John Beidler, 78, died on August 25, 2023, a resident of Chapel Hill, NC. He was born in Biloxi, MS, and was the son of Henry and Pauline (Yerger) Beidler.

Prior to moving to Chapel Hill in 2022, John lived in Princeton for 65 years, attending Princeton Middle School, Princeton High School, and Princeton University, the latter of which he graduated from in 1976. While at Princeton, John was a member of the Ivy Club and a coxswain on the freshman crew team.

Soon after graduation, John enlisted in the Army for three years and rose in rank to First Lieutenant. He spent 12 months in Vietnam during which he was awarded various medals.

Upon leaving the Army, John attended Rutgers Law School earning his JD degree in 1973. He began his legal career as an associate with Smith Stratton and became a partner in the firm in 1978. While at the firm, John defended Johnson and Johnson on its N.J. products liability cases and in 1983, at the request of the General Counsel of J&J, he joined the legal department, where he was employed until his retirement.

John was a devoted husband to his wife, Marsha Wolf Beidler, whom he married in 1974; father to his two children, Dora and Evan, whom John and Marsha adopted from Bulgaria when the children were ages 5 and 3 respectively; and brother/brother-in-law to his sisters, Mary Hovik (Nils) and Susan Tabler (Brian), and Marsha’s siblings, Andrea Miller (Norm), Agnes Ross (Mike), and George Chillag (Diane). He also enjoyed being with his numerous nieces and nephew, Eliana Perrin, Suzanne Colman, Dana Gaines, Amy Chillag, and Thomas Ross.

John was a voluminous reader, reading mostly novels in his youth and texts on philosophy, religion, and politics in his adult years. He enjoyed gardening and bridge, but mostly he will be best remembered as the funniest person in the room, and we will all miss the laughter he brought to our lives.

John’s ashes will be interred in Princeton Cemetery and in Temple Judea Cemetery in Chapel Hill, NC. A gathering of friends and family will be held in both Princeton and Chapel Hill in the future.