Norman D. Evans - Obituary

Norman Danforth Evans was born on Pearl Harbor Day, December 7, 1946, and died on Memorial Day, May 30, 2023, at age 76. He was red, white and blue through and through. He was the son of Robert Carlisle Evans and Nellie Danforth Evans of greater Albany, New York. In childhood, he attended Bethlehem Central High School. He also attained the level of Eagle Scout. In 1969, Norman graduated Rensselaer Polytechnique Institute in Troy, NY with a degree in electrical engineering and had already acquired his security clearances. He later obtained a master of electrical engineering from Northeastern University in Boston. Norman was a product of the Sputnik generation. He worked in radar, sonar and signal processing. As a private contractor, he devoted a lifetime of service to many special agencies that protect the United States including the CIA, the NRO, the Bush Center and more. He traveled for his country to such prestigious sites as Sandia National Labs and Alice Springs, Australia. He worked on many familiar projects such as the Motorola satellite phone, placing 70 satellites in geosynchronous orbit around the globe, and the Guardian Project, placing anthrax detectors around every military base in the country to screen against bioweapons attacks, thus protecting service men and women. One of Norman's most proud moments was being personally asked to edit the book Optimum Array Processing: Detection, Estimation and Modulation Theory by Harry L Van Trees. Norman settled in Anne Arundel county Maryland in the mid 1980s and married Anne Le Baron Miller of Roanoke, Virginia in July of 1993. They had one daughter Sarah Talbott Danforth Evans born in 1995. For hobbies, Norman enjoyed hiking, camping, ham radio, and traveling. He had been an avid outdoorsman. He supported the Appalachian Trail all of his life. He also enjoyed traveling abroad with his wife and daughter to such nations as Greece, Italy, Israel and the UK. Norman was a lineal descent of Thomas Danforth of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, a conservative Puritan who lead opposition to British control in the colonies, and was the founder of Framingham, Massachusetts. Norman was proud of his heritage. Norman is survived by his wife Anne L. Evans, and daughter Sarah T. D. Evans and two younger brothers, Jeffrey and Douglas Evans, as well a nephew Alexander H. C. Evans. Family and friends are invited to celebrate Norman’s life on Friday, June 9 from 2 to 3 PM, followed by a memorial service at 3, at Kalas Funeral Home and Crematory, 2973 Solomons Island Road, Edgewater.