John F. Tormey

December 12, 1919 ~ December 19, 2020

Monterey ~ John Francis Tormey passed away in his sleep on December 19 at the age of 101. Born in Oneida, New York, John exceled at Aquinas Institute, graduated from Notre Dame as a chemical engineer in 1941, and earned a Masters Degree in chemical engineering from MIT in 1943. He immediately joined the Navy during WW-2 and worked on improving torpedo technology. He was stationed in Carmel, California where he often said his most dangerous duty in the war was when submarine captains experienced wayward torpedoes in Tokyo Bay, and spent their entire return journey imagining what they would do to the ensigns developing that torpedo technology.

John joined up with a new group within North American Aviation Corporation called Rocketdyne and moved with his wife Jean to California. He led the development of the rocket fuels that powered America’s space exploration and moon landings, being a master of both liquid and solid propellants. His 1957 paper “Liquid Rocket Propellants—Is There an Energy Limit?” in many ways capped this phase of his career, and during one presentation on the topic John drew the interest of Werner Von Braun who reportedly began ordering rail cars of hydrazine delivered to the Redstone Arsenal at Huntsville Alabama based in part based on this work.

John moved his growing family to Texas for Rocketdyne, pioneering advances in solid rocket propellants at the McGregor facility. Always one to share the excitement of his work with his family, he would bring home interesting items for us to experience; his son bit in to a semi-solid gel solid propellant and is still alive today. He and his family then moved back to California into a corporate management position. He was responsible for siting and mission of Rocketdyne’s Science Center in southern California, and served as an internal problem solver to the corporation including responsibility for opening the relationship between private industry and academia. He retired as Executive VP for Research and Technology.

John was an early adopter of many fitness programs, taking up yoga in the 1960s and running in the 1970s. He brought his children in to these discoveries and enriched their lives. He was an avid sports fan and while generally loyal he did shift allegiances from the Los Angeles to the San Francisco teams after retirement and moving to Carmel. He remained active in retirement, with an important role in managing aspects of the Red Cross chapter in Carmel/Monterey, and as a pivotal stakeholder for two major land use decisions in his community: supporting the expansion of the Pebble Beach Company’s assets at Spanish Bay, and opposing the incorporation of Pebble Beach as an independent city. John brought the energy and logic of a rocket scientist to all of these endeavors to benefit the community at large. He was a longtime member of St. Angela Merici Catholic Church in Pacific Grove.

Together with his wife of 67 years, Jean, who lived to 94 years old, they built a family of 3 boys and a girl, and collectively have 5 grandchildren and a great grandson. Pebble Beach was their lodestar during John’s career work, and was their home upon his retirement. Always a lively storyteller, John is also survived by a wide array of friends of many ages. His children remember him as a loving engaged father who opened up the universe to them.