A native of St. Petersburg, Russia, Leonard was born on June 4, 1945. He attended Leningrad State University and graduated in 1967 with a degree in theoretical physics. In 1978, he and his family emigrated to the United States as part of the exodus of Jews from the Soviet Union. A year later, Leonard accepted a job at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., embarking on a multi-decade relationship with NASA.
In 1982, he was hired by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and moved his family to the West coast. While pursuing a career as a high-level defense industry contractor at Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and other major aerospace firms, Leonard continued his education at the University of California Los Angeles, where he earned his masters degree and, in 1995, his PhD, in electrical engineering. His work experience came full circle in 2011, when he completed his final contract job, at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico.
Leonard loved reading books (especially about science), traveling abroad, eating seafood, and spending time with his family. He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Natasha (nee Bashmakova), daughters Victoria (Jim) and Julia, and his grandson, Nikolai.
A celebration of Leonard’s life will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, May 12, at the Eternal Valley Memorial Park and Mortuary at 23287 North Sierra Hwy in Newhall, Calif.
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