Lawrence Woodruff

Lawrence Woodruff died June 10. He was 85.

Woodruff was born in Long Beach, California in 1938, to Ruth and Lawrence Woodruff. After graduating from Hayward High School in 1956 he earned a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering at Cal State University Berkeley in 1961. After brief stints at Boeing in Seattle, Washington and Lockheed Martin in San Jose, California, he enrolled at California State University Davis and completed a doctor of philosophy in 1969. From there he went on to a career in national defense, including positions at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), TRW, and as a political appointee at the Department of Defense in the Pentagon. He retired from LLNL as Associate Director in 1993.

He is survived by his wife Sylvia, daughter Tracey, son-in-law Andy Madeira, and grandchildren Xavier, Max and Isabelle. He was predeceased by his son, Scott.

A memorial and celebration of his life will be held at the Pinecrest Chalet on Wednesday, July 5 from 3 to 6 p.m. Please see his online memorial at larry-woodruff.forevermissed.com.