John R. Rapp G’64

John R. Rapp G’64 died on September 25, 2008, in Roanoke, Virginia.

Born in Rochester, N.Y., on January 5, 1923, he prepared for college at West High there. In World War II, he served as a navigator for what was then the Army Air Corps, 390th Bomb Group, flying missions in Europe until his plane was shot down near Dresden, Germany. He crash-landed, was wounded, taken prisoner, and held in Germany until Russian troops liberated his camp near the end of the war. He was awarded the Purple Heart. Upon his return home, he completed undergraduate work at the University of Rochester, later earning a master’s degree at Bowdoin. He was a director of math instruction for the Rochester school system and a teacher of math at Monroe High School. He continued to serve in the Air Force reserve, retiring with the rank of Lt. Colonel. He spent much time in Maine and purchased a cottage in South Harpswell. He was predeceased by his first wife, Elizabeth Ann Vierhile Rapp, who died in 1990. He is survived by his wife, Emily Hickey Rapp, whom he married in 1993; two daughters, Carla Rapp of Victor, N.Y., and Linda Jones of Beaufort, S.C.; two sons, John Rapp of Ionia, N.Y., and Philip Rapp of Hampden, Maine; three stepchildren; six grandchildren; and two great grandchildren.