INCOSE WMA Newsletter Holiday Season 2010

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E

1 Presidents Word & Upcoming Events

1 Election Announcements

2 A Personal Remembrance of James E. Long

Presidents Word

Greetings INCOSE WMA Members!

As this year closes, I hope it has been filled with

success and good memories. We have had

wonderful speakers, delicious food, and great

company. Importantly for December, our holiday

party was a complete success. We packed the

banquet room at McCormick and Schmitt’s.

Now as January approaches and as my position as

INCOSE WMA President transitions into Past

President, I hope that I have served you well.

In closing, please have a wonderful rest of the

year and please continue reading to my personal

remembrance of Jim Long.

Sincerely,

Steven H. Dam

INCOSE WMA President

Upcoming Events

January Join us on January 11th @ 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. @ the Brio Tuscan Grille, Tysons Corner I for a presentation by Karen Van Dyke on National Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Architecture.

February Join us on February 8th @ 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. @ TBD I for a presentation by Ken Laskey on Service-Oriented Architectures.

Congratulations to our iPad Raffle winner – Michael Campbell, a 2009 member and a frequent attendee. I wonder what next year’s incentive will be.

Election Results – It’s Official!

President/Past-President Kevin Weinstein

Vice President/President Elect

Laurie L. Nasta Treasurer

Eileen Moore

At-Large Board Member Matthew Dismer

Chairperson, Programs Committee Jana Richards Taylor

Congratulations to the newest the INCOSE WMA Board members!

2

For more information on INCOSE WMA, please visit www.incose-wma.org

A Personal Remembrance of James E. Long

Dear fellow INCOSE WMA member,

On the low side of this holiday season, I was informed by David Long that his father Jim passed away. After skyrocketing blood pressure alerted doctors to the presence of blockages near the heart, Jim underwent quadruple bypass surgery in early July. Though the surgery went well, it triggered a cascading series of health problems– infections, kidney issues, and respiratory difficulties. While Jim’s heart was strong and he progressed several times, the cumulative impact ultimately proved to be too much. Jim passed away peacefully on Sunday December 12 surrounded by his family. I met Jim back in the early 90s when I was working at SAIC and he was a sales engineer supporting Ascent Logic Corporation. He sold us on the RDD-100 tool. We insisted that he provide the training, as it was clear he understood the concepts behind the tool better than your average sales engineer. In fact, Jim has been a major player in development of the model-based system engineer approach back in the late 60s when he worked at TRW. Jim supported his son, David, in a new start: Vitech Corporation, which developed and sells the CORE system engineering tool. David and Jim asked me to write their first user’s manual, which I did. We had a long and productive relationship for over 18 years and I considered Jim a mentor and friend. He will be missed by all who knew him. Jim was laid to rest in his birthplace and family hometown of Hoopeston, Illinois. In lieu of flowers, Jim’s family asked that those so moved make a contribution to your favorite charity during the holiday season. Since Jim helped found the WMA Chapter, we thought it would be appropriate to rename the recently established fund with the INCOSE Foundation. The WMA Board of Directors voted to rename the fund the “WMA/James E. Long Memorial Fund.” So if you want to contribute to a fund in Jim’s name specifically, please do so. That way his name will carry on the tradition of system engineering Jim pioneered. Sincerely,

Steven H. Dam