Dear Society Members,
It is with great sorrow that I have to announce that John Paul (Jack) Riegel III, the Founding President of the International Ballistics Society, passed away on the morning of September 8. He will be greatly missed.
His contributions to the Society were numerous and essential. Jack was the leading force behind the transformation of the International Ballistics Committee (IBC) onto the current International Ballistics Society (IBS). As Chair of the IBC, Jack took upon himself writing the constitution of the new Society, creating a new structure based on an election system. He would become the first president of the IBS after the transition in 2010.
During the following years, Jack volunteered endless hours to develop every single aspect of the IBS. He committed his time to design the initial website, establish the electronic library, incorporate papers from proceedings into the new database, develop a filing system, or create the Education Committee. He really wanted in place the tools to encourage communication, sharing, and learning for the experts in the Ballistics field.
It is impossible to list here all his contributions. Above all were his personality and charisma that transpired in each of his accomplishments and in his individual contact with all of us. I was fortunate to be the Secretary of the IBC during those years and assist in the transformation with him. I learned so much from him, his bearing, his ethics, his endless dedication to generate and manage successfully the new Society. Jack was a person willing to patiently listen and deliberate all opinions, consider different options, and evaluate them fairly, always thinking about the best future for the Society.
The best tribute we can offer to Jack is continuing his legacy: maintaining and enhancing the Society he successfully created and where his absolute passion, which is scientific knowledge, is shared within the Ballistics community
An obituary and funeral arrangements can be found in: http://porterloring.tributes.com/obituary/show/John-Jack-P.-Riegel-107499745
Sincerely,
Sidney Chocron
President, International Ballistics Society
