Roy Steven Robitaille

Lab retiree Roy Steven Robitaille died March 10 after a yearlong battle with cancer.

Robitaille, the oldest of three sons, was born March 30, 1930 in Detroit, Mich. to Frank and Helen Robitaille.

He served in the Korean War for two years. During that time, he was handpicked for many assignments.

After returning to the States, he started his career at Rocketdyne, a division of North America Aviation, where he designed rocket engine support systems that NASA used to help propel man into space. Later, he was employed by Atomics International where he managed many projects.

In 1962, he was hired by LLNL as a design associate and later a superintendent in the Nuclear Explosive Engineering Department (NEED) within Mechanical Engineering. During his 26 years at the Lab, he worked on a number of projects including several at Rocky Flats and the Nevada test site.

In 1986, Robitaille took a leadership role in the Treaty Verification Program. Although he was in a serious work environment, he still found joy in creating close bonds with his colleagues. Many of these friendships were carried beyond the lab and into retirement.

Robitaille had many interests and hobbies, but his greatest joy was his family.

He is survived by his wife Barbetta, two daughters, four sons, 10 grandchildren, and three great grandchildren.

Gravesite services were held March 16 in Sun City West, Ariz.