FRENCH PETER MICHAEL Formerly of Didcot, England, Oakmont, Pennsylvania, and Aiken, South Carolina, passed away on January 9, 2017. He is survived by his wife, Joan; his sons, Simon, Chris, and Tim; and his grandchildren, Stephen, Danielle, Hannah, Audrey, Cole, Philip, Felicia, and Jennifer. Mike is also survived by his two great- grandchildren, Winnrey and Brilani. Mike was born on July 22, 1935, in Yorkshire, England. After receiving his Bachelors of Science and Masters of Science in Metallurgy from Leeds University, Mike spent his early career working in Harwell, England for the UK Atomic Energy Authority. He married Joan Whitworth on August 23, 1959. They moved to Didcot for his work and all three sons were born while they were living there. In 1967, he was recruited by Westinghouse and brought his family to the United States. They travelled to America on the Queen Elisabeth II and came in through New York City. They settled in Oakmont, Pennsylvania, where the family would live for the next 20 years. Mike worked for Westinghouse for the rest of his career, starting in the Advanced Reactors division in Cheswick, Pennsylvania and eventually working his way into management including the position of Manager of Business Development Advanced Power Systems Division. In 1976, the entire French family celebrated becoming naturalized US citizens. Mike completed his career with Westinghouse at the Savannah River Project where he worked for 13 years before retiring. He remained active in the Savannah River Site Retirees Association for several years following his retirement. He was well respected in his field and helped found the International Metallurgical Society before serving on the board. From 1977-1979 he was Vice- President of the IMS. He was then elected President of the IMS from 1979-1981. Despite being born in England and remaining a lifelong Huddersfield Town (soccer) fan, Mike was swept up by the Pittsburgh Steelers winning ways in the 1970s and celebrated all of the Steelers Super Bowl victories with all of his friends from Pittsburgh. A memorial service will be held at Oakmonte Village at Lake Mary, FL, on April 8, 2017, at 1:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to The Alzheimer's Association at www.alz.org. Send condolences post-gazette.com/gb
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