William L. Adams, "Bill" PhD.

William L. “Bill” Adams, PhD., age 80, of Powell, Ohio, died peacefully at Riverside Hospital, in Columbus, Ohio on Friday, July 20, 2012. He is preceded in death by his mother and father Dorothy and Robert Adams, his sister Mary Jacobs and his son Robert Adams. Bill is survived by his loving wife of 56 years, Claire; his children: Kathy (Mark) Hall of Norfolk, NE; Judy (John) Adams Foelber of Houston, TX; Tricia (Ray) Kelly of Draper, UT; Mary (Mark) Paquette of Claremore, OK; David Adams, Steve (Gretchen) Adams, Dan (Kristen) Adams, Emily (Allen) Lenko, all of Columbus, OH; Jim (Monica) Adams of Loveland, CO; Tom (Mariela) Adams of Ardsley, NY; his 19 grandchildren and one great-grandchild; his sister Barb Deli of Wheaton, IL; his two brothers: John (Mary) Adams of Fairfax Station, VA and Carl (Marlene) Adams of Eden Prairie, MN; and their families. Bill was born in Gay, MI. He graduated from Michigan Technology University in 1954 with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. He earned a M.S. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University where he stayed on as an Assistant Professor. He was involved in Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa Nu and Sigma Nu. Bill was a lifetime member of the IEEE Society and the International Society of Automation (ISA). He served in the United States Army as a Lieutenant. Bill moved his growing family to Columbus, Ohio in 1963 to work at Industrial Nucleonics Corporation (Accuray) where he worked for 30 years as an engineer and eventually served as vice president. This was followed by a position at ABB. Bill was responsible for setting up two innovative joint ventures in Ireland and Russia. He holds a number of automation, control and instrumentation patents. After retiring in 1994, Dr. Adams continued his passion for solving problems and formed a consulting firm that provided engineering and management services (Adtech). Bill was active in his community including leading the team of lectors and RCIA at St. Joan of Arc Parish in Powell, Ohio. He gave back to others by sharing his wisdom and lessons learned through the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) and Columbus Tech Angels. He loved education and supported the Columbus Preparatory Academy and the Columbus Arts and Technology Academy by serving on the board of trustees . He was an adventurer-earning his private pilot license and enjoying downhill skiing and sailing. Bill’s family will receive friends from 2-4 & 6-8pm. THURSDAY at the RUTHERFORD FUNERAL HOME AT POWELL, 450 West Olentangy St., Powell, OH 43065 (614)-792-1471. (The funeral home is located on W. Olentangy St./Powell Rd./SR 750 ¼ mile east of Sawmill Parkway.) Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 10:00am. FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012 at ST. JOAN OF ARC CATHOLIC CHURCH, 10700 Liberty Road, Powell, OH 43065. Burial will follow at Resurrection Cemetery, Lewis Center, Ohio. Memorial Contributions in Bill’s honor may be made to a charity of your choice or to his son’s scholarship fund: The Robert L. Adams Scholarship Fund at Michigan Tech. Contribution envelopes will be available at the funeral home or by giving on-line to: www.mtu.edu/forest/giving/undergrad-scholarships/ . Please visit www.rutherfordfuneralhomes.com to send a condolence to Bill’s family.