Camarillo/Thousand Oaks, CA
February 1933 – March 2019
Jack W. Chapman passed away March 28th after a life well lived. The only child of Aldon and Abbie Chapman, he grew up in Bellingham, WA, where he cultivated his lifelong love of books, becoming a self-proclaimed Bibliomaniac. Dad played clarinet and saxophone in high school, being part of the swing and marching bands. In 8th grade, he met the love of his life, Carol Donovan, whom he married in 1954. Dad served in the Navy as a sonar operator in the Pacific and was known as “The Professor” for always having his nose in a book. He was the first in his family to attend a university, studying math and physics at the University of Washington. He was a computer engineer with IBM for 35 years helping with the Space Shuttle computer systems, and after retirement from IBM, went on to teach computer science at Cal Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. Dad was a good and decent man, and generous to a fault. He cared for his widowed mother for many years, and in addition, later helped care for his aunt and uncle. Jack and Carol were happily married for 57 years before her passing in 2011. We are comforted with the thought of Dad’s reunion with Mom, and those family members who have passed before him. He is survived by his three daughters and two son-in-laws. His light will not dim with his death.
Arrangements are under the direction of the JOSEPH P. REARDON FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICE, 757 East Main Street, Ventura.