BESENFELDER, Edward Roald

The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona Thursday, April 07, 2011 Edward Roald Besenfelder, 85, a resident of Prescott, Ariz., for 16 years, died Tuesday April 5, 2011. He was born in North Rose, N.Y., on Feb. 16, 1926, and was the seventh son of Joseph and Mary Weilhamer Besenfelder. He graduated from Rome Free Academy in 1943, served in the U.S. Navy during WWII and the Korean War, and was honorably discharged in 1952. Ed married Shirley Waller on Sept. 13, 1952, in Rome, N.Y., and together they raised four children. He was a very loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, and will be greatly missed by all. He earned his B.S. degree in electrical engineering from Syracuse University, graduating magma cum laude in 1955. He began his career as an engineer in Syracuse, N.Y., working for GE; he then worked for Honeywell in OKC, and retired from Honeywell Bull Information Systems in 1987 in Phoenix, Ariz. He developed seven patents in Electrical Data Processing and was a winner of a technical excellence award in 1986. After moving to Prescott, Ariz., in 1995, he attended Sacred Heart Catholic Church. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Shirley W. Besenfelder; two wonderful sons, Edward J. Besenfelder (Debi) of Bakersfield, Calif., and Lawrence M. Besenfelder (Phyllis) of Scottsdale, Ariz.; two wonderful daughters, Cathleen A. McColley of Phoenix, Ariz. and Carol E. Tuerff (Joseph) of Glendale, Ariz.; five grandchildren, Carolyn Griffiths, Andrea Allen, Richard McColley, Lauren Besenfelder and Jessica Besenfelder; and two great-grandchildren, Jimmy Griffiths and Erik Allen. Visitation for family and friends will take place from 7 to 8 p.m. with a Rosary at 8 p.m. Sunday, April 10, 2011, at Arizona Ruffner Wakelin Funeral Home. A mass of Christian burial will be at Sacred Heart Catholic Church at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, April 11. Interment will take place at 1:30 p.m. at St. Francis Cemetery in the Resurrection Mausoleum in Phoenix, Ariz. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Vincent de Paul, 120 N. Summit Ave, Prescott, AZ 86301, or to Good Samaritan Society Prescott Hospice, Marley House, 1063 Ruth St., Prescott, AZ 86301. Arizona Ruffner Wakelin Funeral Home assisted the family with final arrangements. Log onto www.ruffnerwakelin.com to view and sign Ed's guestbook. Information provided by survivors.