Herbert Wolkstein
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Herbert Wolkstein

Herbert Joseph Wolkstein, 96, died Aug. 28, 2017, in West Orange. Born in Newark, he moved to Livingston in 1959, where he lived until 2015. 

Mr. Wolkstein started his professional career in 1953 as an electrical engineer in the Microwave Tube Division of RCA Corp. Over the next 34 years at RCA, he rose to become the head of Space Communications and Electronic Counter Measures at the RCA Laboratories David Sarnoff Research Center in Princeton. He was awarded 25 patents, authored 44 technical papers, and contributed to the development of numerous communications satellites. 

In 1982, he was awarded the RCA Laboratories Outstanding Achievement Award for his work in developing RCA communication satellites. In 1983, he received RCA Corporation’s highest honor, The David Sarnoff Research Award, for outstanding technical achievement. 

After the sale of RCA to General Electric in 1987, he left the company to become an independent consultant to the aerospace and defense electronics industry, where he was active until 2014. He was considered one of the world’s leading experts in travelling wave tubes and satellite communications. 

He was a graduate of Weequahic High School, Newark, and Newark College of Engineering. 

He served in the Army Air Corps in the European Theater during World War II. 

Predeceased by his wife, Doris Eckel Wolkstein, he is survived by his daughter, Marianne; two sons, William and John (Amy); and three grandsons. 

Services were held Aug. 31 with arrangements by Bernheim-Apter-Kreitzman Suburban Funeral Chapel, Livingston. Memorial contributions may be made to Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research; mail checks to Donation Processing, The Michael J. Fox Foundation, P.O. Box 5014, Hagerstown, MD 21741.

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