Ronald W. Waite, 90, of Somerset, NJ passed away surrounded by family on the morning of December 18, 2023. Ronald was born in Jamestown NY, to parents William and Elizabeth Waite. He spent the early years of his life in Western New York State, working on his family's dairy farm, giving him a healthy dislike for the snow and cold weather.

Ronald was a graduate of Clarkson College, Potsdam, NY., 0with a degree in Electrical Engineering. After college, Ron joined the U. S. Army Signal Core and by March of 1958 was honorably discharged as a commissioned officer with the rank of 1st Lieutenant.

After leaving the army, Ron continued to work with the military as an electrical engineer. but this time as a civilian employee. In June 1958,.Ron joined the Atmospheric Sciences Laboratory at ECOM, Ft. Monmouth, NJ. He was responsible for the development and application of meteorological and surveillance equipment. In 1960, Ron set himself apart by inventing and patenting the "Radiosonde with Binary Coded Identification". In short, a way to collect and transmit atmospheric and meteorological conditions. Modern versions are used extensively throughout the world today. By August of 1976, Ron moved over to the Electronic Warfare Laboratory at Ft. Monmouth, NJ. He continued to work on atmospheric and radar-based systems. The largest and most important of these is Teampack. Teampack is a passive radar interceptor and the direction-finding system mounted onto a track vehicle. It provides protection to soldiers from enemy radar while also pinpointing the radar's source and transmitting that data to the appropriate strike force. Ronald continued contributing intelligence and ingenuity to the Electronic Warfare Lab and the Defense Department until he retired in 1996.

Ronald was the loving and devoted husband to Elaine Sara Waite. Elaine was previously married to Thomas Clements who tragically went down with the Thresher submarine in 1963. In the late 1960s, Elaine moved to Avon, NJ and began working for the Atmospheric Sciences Laboratory at Ft. Monmouth. It wasn't long before Ron and Elaine met, locked eyes and fell deeply in love. They were married on September 9, 1967. For over 50 years, they walked together, hand in hand, side by side, through all the happiness and hardships of life. Sadly, Ron and Elaine's path together ended on January 5, 2018, when Elaine passed away shortly after their 50th wedding anniversary. This separation was short-lived, however, as they are now walking together again……hand in hand…… side by side.

Ronald is survived by his loving children, Patricia Giaquinto of Somerset, NJ; Sandra and Dr. Jerry Collins of Somerset, NJ; and Ronald W Waite Jr of Philadelphia, PA.; as well as his grandchildren, Leanna Flores, Nadina Heliotis, Arielle Giaquinto, James Giaquinto, Trevor Collins, and Evelyn Collins, and 8 great-grandchildren!

Memorial service to be held at:

Bridgewater United Methodist Church

651 Country Club Rd

Bridgewater, NJ 08807

Friday December, 29th at 1pm

Repast at 2pm

Burial Service:

Brigadier General

William C. Doyle Memorial Cemetery

350 Provinceline Road

Wrightstown, NJ 08562

Thursday January, 4th at 12:30pm