Mr Joel Walter Spinner

Joel Walter Spinner died on March 21, 2017 surrounded by famiy after bravely fighting an 8 1/2 yer battle with leukemia.  He was born October 11, 1934 to Irving “Jack” and Lee Grodzicker Spinner in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.  He attended Stuyvesant High School and City College of New York, graduating with a BS in Electrical Engineering.  He received a Masters in Electrical Engineering from Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. 

He started with career at American Electric Power Company in NY, NY designing power plants in the Midwest.  He moved to the James Forrestal Research Center at Princeton University where we worked on controlled thermonuclear fusion.  In 1965, he and his family moved to Stony Brook, NY when he began working at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Yaphank, NY.  His career brought him back to AEP, then to Ebasco designing both coal and nuclear power plant in the West and abroad.  He ended his career at Brookhaven National Lab. 

Joel met the love of his life, Rhoda, at CCNY.  They were married on June 17, 1956 and were fortunate to celebrate their 60th anniversary last year. They had three children, Beth, Steven and Elissa “Lisa”.  Family was very important to Joel and he loved spending time with his children and grandchildren.

Joel and Rhoda loved to travel, visiting every continent except Antarctica.  They loved the arts, spending many hours at museums, theaters, concerts and films.  They were active participant at the Roundtable, now known as the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Stony Brook University.  In addition to taking classes, Joel also taught a wide variety of classes there. 

Joel was predeceased by his parents, Jack and Lee Spinner and his daughter, Elissa, in 1990 and son, Steven, in 1995.  He is survived by his brother Jonathan, wife Rhoda, daughter Beth and her husband David, daughter-in-law Claire and her husband John, and grandchildren Elissa, Robert, Karen, Jennifer, and Michael.

Joel was known for his joy of life, keen intellect, and sharp wit He will be sorely missed by a loving community of family and friends.

The family will sit shiva Monday 3/27/17, Tuesday 3/28/17, and Wednesday 3/29/17 at their home.

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