Brian White - K9LCQ Waukesha, WI

[KJ4QAN]

Brian White passed away on May 20, 2012. He was the best friend a guy could ever ask for. Brian and I go back over 30 years. We worked together at GE Medical Systems in Waukesha, Wisconsin in 1979. Brian taught me more about electronics than any instructor could. He was, without exaggeration, the best electronics technician they had at the time. He was most currently employed by American Signal Corporation as the service manager. Brian was the current alderman for the city of Waukesha aldermanic district #6, was a member of the cemetery commission for Prairie Home Cemetery, and spent many years volunteering for the City of Waukesha Christmas parade. White also participated in the most recent Waukesha Police Department Citizens Academy. He was a member of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church where he often assisted with the church’s audiovisual needs. He enjoyed rockets and was a member of the Tripoli Rocketry Association and the National Association of Rocketry (NAR). He was also a member of the National Rifle Association for as long as I can remember. He was a local champion trap shooter, and we enjoyed many years together throwing lead downrange at the local gun clubs.

Brian held an Extra Class license and was also an ARRL member. He was the one who talked me into becoming a Ham in 2009. When he learned that all I had was an HT as a Technician, Brian sent me a nice Yaesu FT-1500 he wasn't using much anymore. I use that radio every Tuesday night for the SkyWarn and the Spring Hill Amateur Radio Club nets. With a J-pole at 20 feet, I made a long distance contact of 87 miles through a repeater in between. He thought that was amazing. Brian was also a SkyWarn Spotter and served as a volunteer at the National Weather Service station in Sullivan, WI. He was also very active with Waukesha County ARES/RACES for 14 years.

Since moving to Florida with my wife in 2002, I hadn't seen Brian in person until last year. He came to visit with a couple other close friends and we had a great time. We always kept in tough by land-line or email for the nine years. He was somewhat of an Elmer for me and I pestered him with lots of questions. Although he held an Extra class license, he never worked HF, and was satisfied with 2M. I guess it was only natural for an intelligent guy like Brian to pursue the highest class anyway. To his credit, he had over 1300 'look-ups' here on QRZ.com in 2009, which I informed him of at the time. He was quite surprised by the number.

I will miss Brian for he was such a good friend. He always had time for his friends. He loved his life-long city of Waukesha and gave them his best until the very end. K9LCQ de KJ4QAN SK DOM.

[K2HAT]

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http://waukesha.patch.com/articles/waukesha-alderman-dies-after-a-year-in-office

Alderman Remembered for Wanting to Make Waukesha 'A Better Place to Live'

Brian White, who served as 6th District alderman since April 2011, died of heart failure on Sunday.

• By Joe Petrie
• Email the author
• May 21, 2012

Waukesha Alderman Brian White, who died Sunday from heart failure, is being remembered as someone who did whatever he could to make the city a great place to live.
“He knew what he believed in and what he liked, and he fought for what he believed in,” said his brother, Alan White. “All communities go through changes and there were changes he didn’t believe in that passed or got through, but he did his part to keep the things he believed in in the community.”
Brian White, who was 55, died at Waukesha Memorial Hospital.
Alan White said his brother was very active throughout the community and in other activities, such as the Tripoli Rocketry Association, ham radio and volunteering at the National Weather Service station in Sullivan. The lifelong Waukesha resident was also an award-winning trap-shooter. However, Alan White said his brother’s biggest passion was helping out the community, making sure he went out and met voters instead of relying on yard signs so he could have a personal connection with residents.
“He was there for the people of the community,” Alan White said. “If the majority of the people wanted to go left, he would take them left. He listened to the people of Waukesha and wanted to make it a better place to live in, and being a politician it’s tough to everybody on the same page.”
Mayor Jeff Scrima described White as a "caring and responsible colleague. We will miss him.”
In addition to serving as alderman since April 2011, White also participated in the most recent Waukesha Police Department Citizens Academy.
Alderman Paul Ybarra said he first met White five or six years ago while volunteering for the Christmas parade. He said White was a caring individual and leader who took his time to research issues.
“You can tell a person cares when it was midyear and he was already starting to think of ways to make the parade better,” Ybarra said.
Ybarra said White made sure to research issues the Common Council tackled and always made sure to get facts before deciding on an issue, saying White made sure to meet with others to discuss issues, such as water. “He wasn’t looking to validate his own thoughts when going in, so he spent a lot of time considering the facts,” Ybarra said. “The big thing is he invested the time to educate himself on all sides of the issues.”
Alderwoman Joan Francoeur said she got to know White while he served on the Human Resources Committee she chairs, saying he was always thoughtful in the decision making process even though he wouldn’t be the most vocal at times.
Francoeur said during one development issue that came before the Common Council White even took the time to go near the area and meet with neighbors near the development so he could better understand the situation at hand before making a decision.
“He was a quiet member of the committee, but you could always tell when he agreed with something because he would have a shy smile,” she said.
Common Council President Joe Pieper added: “Brian was a very thoughtful man and certainly will be missed and our thoughts and prayers are with his family."

White is survived by his mother, Doris White of Waukesha; his brothers, Kevin White and Alan (Jill) White, both of Waukesha; and two nieces, Krista and Mandy White, both of Waukesha. He is further survived by his aunts, Lois Gehrke of Sussex and Eileen (Ed) Rachwal of Mukwonago, along with cousins, other relatives and friends.

Visitation was held on Wednesday, May 23, 2012 from 4:00PM until the 7:30PM funeral service at Randle-Dable-Brisk Funeral Home, 1110 S. Grand Avenue, Waukesha. Rev. Scott Oelhafen will preside. Burial will be held on Thursday, May 24 at 10:00AM at Prairie Home Cemetery. Please meet at the cemetery office. For further information, please call Randle-Dable-Brisk Funeral, Cremation and Preplanning Services at 262-547-4035 or go to www.waukeshafunerals.com for directions or to leave the family an online tribute message.

http://www.randledablefuneralhome.co...ased_id=256016

My Condolences.

K9LCQ SK

73 K2HAT Lee