Daniel Hritzay
Nov 11, 1930- Jul 17, 2020
Daniel Hritzay, age 89, of Winchester, July 17, 2020. Husband of the late Florence Paine Hritzay, Father of Anne Hritzay and her husband Ronald Mitchell of Mercer Island, WA and the late Stephen Hritzay. Grandfather of Lex Mitchell of Portland, OR and Kayla Mitchell of Mercer Island WA. Uncle of Julie Fajardo of Medway MA, Susan Serpa of Worcester MA, and David Paine of Debary, FL.
Mr. Hritzay was born in Brooklyn New York and received his engineering education at the City College of New York and MIT. He spent most of his career at the Avco Corporation, currently the Textron Corporation. As a principal staff engineer at Avco Everett Research Lab, he designed the largest arc heated wind tunnel in the country which tested materials for space and reentry applications for over twenty years. He later designed machinery for fabricating large super conducting magnets. He holds US and foreign patents for the above equipment. He managed and authored papers on advance technology programs primarily in the development of systems to penetrate enemy ballistic missile defense systems.
He retired after thirty years at Textron and with his wife did extensive travelling and volunteer work. Mr. Hritzay helped to run the Prostate Cancer Support Group for the Winchester Hospital for many years. He was a docent at the Science Museum, a suicide hotline volunteer, an ESL Tutor, and a Cambridge School System tutor. He served on the board of the Winchester Historical Society, the Textron Retirees Association and Neighbors for an Open Winchester. He was active in the Winchester Unitarian Society and the Ethical Society of Boston.
Mr. Hritzay was a caring and generous person, always curious and willing to discuss and share ideas in an open and supportive way. He had a wealth of knowledge on philosophical and spiritual matters and enjoyed the questions they posed, and the opportunity to share in a lively conversation. He attended many Elderhostel Classes over the years where he continued to explore a variety of subjects. His graciousness in living his life with advancing Parkinson’s Disease was a hallmark of his character, always with empathy and compassion for those around him. He will be greatly missed. Private graveside services will be held in Vermont. If desired, donations may be made to Winchester Unitarian Society.