Francis (Frank) J. Whitby

Frank, a former Schenectady resident, was born in Chicago to Maude and Francis Thomas Whitby.

He served in various management capacities with General Electric Co. in Schenectady from 1948 until his retirement in 1982.

Prior to joining GE, he served in the U.S. Air Force for five years and continued as a major in the active reserves for several years. After separation from active duty, he was a planning engineer with the Ohmer Register Co. of Dayton, Ohio before relocating to Schenectady.

He completed his studies at Rutgers University in mechanical engineering in 1941 and also received a degree in industrial management from Union College. During his GE career, he was a plant operations manager at the Research and Development Center, held positions in employee relations and general management at the former GE Maqua Company, and at the time of his retirement was an employee relations manager with the installation and service engineering division of GE.

He was the recipient of a number of management awards, a member of the Elfun Society, a graduate of GE's general management program at Crotonville, a member of several Masonic Bodies and once served on the vestry at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Schenectady.
Frank also volunteered many hours to the American Cancer Society and the YMCA. Frank truly enjoyed golfing, woodworking, reading, gardening, and loved boating and Schroon Lake.
Survivors include his wife, Ruth Fuller Whitby; four children, Carol Doss (John) of Randolph Center, Vt. and James (Barbara Paterson) of East Craftsbury, Vt., William (Karen) of South Burlington, Vt., Laura of Rochester; seven grandchildren, Megan, Ethan and Justin, Beth and Matt, Derrick and Alyssa; two step-grandsons, John and Andrew; and one great-grandson, Christopher James.

We would especially like to thank the Springs 2 nursing coordinator, Liz, and her wonderful staff for their care of Frank over the past 10 months. A special thank you to his many dear friends and neighbors for all their support during his long illness as well.

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Dec. 26, 2008 in the Gordon C. Emerick Funeral Home 1550, Route 9 in Clifton Park.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Bethesda Episcopal Church, 41 Washington St., Saratoga Springs NY 12866, or to the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society.