John Leonard Deichman

05/24/1934 — 12/12/2023

From Richland, WA | Born in Centralia, WA

Funeral Service

Starts:
Sat, January 20, 2024, 1:00 pm
Location:
All Saints Episcopal Church

Richland, WA

Celebration of Life

Starts:
Sat, January 20, 2024, 2:00 pm
Location:
Anthology Event Venue
706 Williams Blvd Richland ,WA 99352

John Leonard Deichman

John Deichman, age 89, passed away peacefully after a brief illness. He was surrounded by family.

John was born on May 24, 1934, in Centralia, Washington, to Leonard and Constance Deichman. John attended Centralia High School where he was senior class president.  It was there that he met the love of his life, JoAnn. Upon completion of JoAnn’s teaching degree, they were married, and she moved to Corvallis, Oregon for John’s final year of college.  Their marriage started a life-long journey they built for 67 years.  John graduated from Oregon State University with a degree in electrical engineering and was president of his fraternity, Alpha Sigma Phi.

A passionate family person and community leader, John enjoyed golfing, technology, and meeting with friends.  Along with JoAnn, John liked to travel,  visiting all seven continents.  He was an active participant in his grandchildren and great-grandchildren’s lives, enjoying their many social interactions and activities.  He particularly enjoyed their academic accomplishments and rarely missed a sporting event.

A long-time Tri-Cities resident of over 60 years, John was an accomplished engineer and businessman.  He held senior jobs at KeyTronics, Holosonics, General Electric, Westinghouse, Rockwell, and ended his career as Director of Nuclear Waste Management, Site Utilities and Communications at Hanford. He was an avid problem solver.

As a renowned operator and logistical specialist for nuclear plants, John authored over seventy-five technical publications.  John chaired the National Shallow Land Burial Committee for the Department of Energy comprised of peers from all DOE sites. He was the U.S. Department of State technical consultant and committee representative for International Nuclear Waste Management.  John directed the installation and startup of the first nuclear reactor computer control system (HTLTR), the precursor of today’s modern operation for nuclear power plants. He was also a visiting staff engineer at Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Nuclear Engineering Department.

In his later years, John devoted his energies to community, boards, and associations including All-Saints Episcopal Church Vestry and Treasurer, directing Richland School District bond and levies, President of DeMolay International Chapter of Washington State, President and Board member of the local chapter of National Management Association, Board Trustee for Tri-Cities Low Income Retirement Center, Board Member of Tri-Cities Chaplaincy, President of Horn Rapids HOA, Mid-Columbia Mastersingers Board, Board of Benton County Equalization, and other volunteer positions.

John’s achievements have been recognized as Centralia College’s 1995 Distinguished Alumnus, and the Crystal Apple Award, a special achievement in recognition of service for improving students’ lives throughout the Mid-Columbia region.

John is survived by his loving wife, JoAnn, their three children, Matt (Karen) Deichman; Karen Deichman (Ron Silver); and Mark (Dani) Deichman. John is also survived by his four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren: Alec (Lauren) Deichman and daughter Kendall; and Marcus Deichman; Jacquelyn Deichman (JT Zaengle) and son Griffin; and Lauren Deichman (Conner Budzeck).

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, January 20th, at 1:00 pm, at All-Saints Episcopal Church in Richland, followed by a Celebration of Life at the Anthology Event Center in Richland  Memorials can be made to the Tri-Cities Chaplaincy or All-Saints Episcopal Church, Richland.

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John Leonard Deichman

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  • My sincere condolences to the Deichman family. John was a role model for me in my early years. As an advisor for DeMolay, he served as a good example of a successful man. A success earned through initiative and competence, someone we all wanted to emulate. His guidance was sound and contributed greatly to the success of our initiatives. I ran into him again several times as an adult. He was always a leader in a responsible position. John has lived his life respected and has died regretted. I am deeply sorry for your loss.

    Mike Duncan
    January 20, 2024
    Richland, WA
  • John Deichman was a loving husband to his wife, JoAnn, and a loving father to his children, Matt, Karen, and Mark, as well as to the rest of his family.

    Growing up in the Tri-Cities, Mr. Deichman, as we respectfully called him, treated Matt’s friends, Tim, Dave, and me, as his own children. Encouraging us to excel in academics and in life. His thoughtful discussions on a host of topics always spurred us on to think deeply about subjects and to interact with intellectual honesty. Mr. Deichman would challenge us on topics, if we made a statement that we could not support with evidence.

    His love of world travel, and of being on the cutting edge of technology, never ceased. John was constantly learning, growing, and helping to solve complex problems.

    My deepest condolences to my friend, Matt Deichman, and the rest of John Deichman’s loving family, for their unmeasurable loss.

    May his memory be eternal.

    Sincere regards,

    Demetrios T. Lahiri

    Demetrios T. Lahiri
    January 19, 2024
    Highland Park Texas
  • John was a good neighbor, always kind and helpful. I will always have fond memories of him and our “driveway conversations”. I know that I, along with all that knew him, will feel his loss. Rest in peace John.

    Dan Porter
    January 17, 2024
    Horn Rapids
  • Wishing John’s family peace at a most difficult time. I worked with John at Hanford in my media relations role and can’t tell you how important he was to improving the public understanding of the work we were doing there. The early phase of Hanford cleanup was a very difficult time for us and John was an honest, sincere and capable spokesperson for the cleanup work we were doing and was able to distill difficult technical issues into understandable and believable presentations. He left a lasting legacy. I’m sorry for your loss and I treasure my memory of him and the work we did together.

    Mike Berriochoa
    January 15, 2024
    Kennewick, WA
  • Mark – Just read your dad’s obit. Didn’t know he’d passed. Sorry to hear that. Thots, prayers and the best goes out to you, your mom, and family. He was always a great connect at Starbucks in the past. Take care. Later 😎🙏✌🏻 Bix
    Ps- You must have a new cell #. Drop me a note.

    Anonymous
    January 14, 2024
  • My sincere condolences to the family. I have nothing but great memories of John and all of the Deichman family. He will be missed by many.

    Mickey Rose
    January 9, 2024
    Richland
  • Thank you, JoAnn, for sharing John with us for so many years! Our community is a better place because of the time, talent and commitment you both invested. After our Hanford careers, I had the honor of serving with John on The Chaplaincy Board of Directors. Even then, he was the consummate project manager: passionate, diligent and enthusiatic about finding solutions in a collaborative manner. May we all find comfort in the wonderful memories of John.

    Glenna Moulthrop
    January 4, 2024
    Richland
  • My sincere sympathy is extended to the Deichman family.

    Mary Peters
    January 3, 2024
    Richland, WA
  • My sincere condolences to the Deichman family.

    Allen Moulthrop
    December 28, 2023
    West Richland, WA
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