Andrew Ronald Ochadlick Jr., 74, of New Hope, Pa., died on March 15, 2022.
He is survived by his wife of 37 years, JoAnne, his son, Wyatt Ochadlick (Christine), and his daughter Andrea Moser (Tyler) and his four grandchildren, Macie, Lana and Finn Ochadlick; and Evan Moser. He is also survived by his brother, Paul Ochadlick. He was the son of the late Andrew and Helen Ochadlick.
He was proud of his children. He admired the achievements of his son, Wyatt, in the field of materials science and the accomplishments of his daughter, Andrea, as an occupational therapist.
He enjoyed trips with his wife, especially when visiting their children and grandchildren. He also traveled to Texas, Canada and Maine. Andrew admired and appreciated his wife’s career, which began with mainframe computers and concluded in pharmaceuticals.
Andrew was a career physicist with university, government and industrial R&D experience and an active member of several science organizations. He received a Ph.D. in physics from the State University of New York in Albany, N.Y., with a specialty in nuclear magnetic resonance.
His favorite years of employment were the three years he spent at Texas Instruments in McKinney, Texas, researching the quantum aspects of optical pumping in magnetic resonance devices. His career included time as a physics professor at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., where he taught graduate level physics and was the physics thesis advisor for a number of students. He was also a Visiting Scholar for four years at the University of Pennsylvania researching various topics including the Sun’s sunspot cycle with an advanced wavelet approach.
As for community service for Doylestown and Bucks County, Andrew voluntarily wrote a number of science articles for The Intelligencer. His favorite article appeared on July 4, 1994 about a comet on a collision course with Jupiter.
Andrew received numerous awards throughout his career for research, science publications, complex device developments, solar energy patents and physics teaching skills. But his most treasured award came very early in his physics career from Vice Adm. J. H. King Jr., then commander of U.S. Naval Forces, Vietnam.
Adm. King commended Andrew for his outstanding performance in Cambodia and the Republic of Vietnam, during a dangerous mission Andrew volunteered for. In part, the award from the admiral read: “Working many long hours, day and night, under severe and austere conditions, he was able to maintain the necessary complex equipment, render assistance and advice to the pilots and crew member and provide invaluable information and statistical data to the United States Army intelligence system.”
Andrew was the author of two books: one explaining space-time physics and the other recounting his 1970 experiences in the Republic of Vietnam during the war. His family will maintain his web site at http://www.ochadlickphysics.com/, which lists his numerous physics lecture videos and his books.
He loved studying the night sky with his telescopes some of which he made himself. He was fascinated with cars, trucks, motorcycles, tractors and restored an old muscle car, a red 1970 Chevelle SS-396. He acquired his automotive knowledge by working with his dad and his younger brother at his dad’s business, Point Pleasant Garage.
He was a pilot, an airplane owner, and a member of a U.S. Navy flying club where he flew Navy T-34’s. Andrew loved target shooting with pistol and rifle and was fond of bear hunting in Alaska, Maine, New York and Pennsylvania, with his brother Paul and enjoyed bass fishing tournaments.
He looked forward to fall’s early morning days to hear the crunching of leaves as he walked in the woods, especially with his children when they were young, and appreciated the cool feel of a light drizzle of rain during the warming days of spring. He believed one should continue to seek what appears unobtainable despite any and all obstacles and lived by the wisdom of his modest view that the mind learns by doing and that the heart learns by trying.
A memorial service for Andrew will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, March 24, 2022 at the Shelly Funeral Home, 5930 Easton Road, Plumsteadville, PA 18947. His family will receive friends from 10 a.m. until the time of the service. Interment will be private at the convenience of the family.
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