John Ross Caswell

John Ross Caswell age 83 of Lincoln on June 1, 2011.

Born in Boston on February 11, 1928, son of John Caswell Jr and Margaret (Ross Lansdowne) Caswell. John is survived by his wife of 62 years Carol (Bradley) and by five children and their spouses: Brad and Fran of Pennington, NJ; Chris and Patricia of Sarasota, FL; Fred and Pam of Bolton; Wally and Brenda of Randolph, VT; Carolyn and Jonathan Dwyer of Lincoln. He is also survived by 13 grandchildren.

John grew up in Washington, DC. and graduated from St Mark's School in Southborough, MA in 1945. He entered the US Navy's Radio Technician program and was honorably discharged as a WWII veteran in 1949. He continued in the Naval Reserve, retiring as a Lieutenant USNR in the early 1960's. John graduated from Harvard College in 1953 with an AB in Physical Sciences, and earned his Masters in Physics from UCLA in 1954.

In 1949, John went to work for Raytheon Company in Waltham, MA, and retired in 1990 after 35 years of service in addition to 6 years with the Hughes Aircraft Co. With an expertise in state of the art, high power, radar transmitters, he was a lead manager for several international radar and missile systems defense programs. In the 1970's he and his family moved to Kwajalein Island in Micronesia where he served as Raytheon Site Manager.

Since his arrival in Lincoln in 1958, John has been a generous volunteer of his time, and opinions, to numerous civic activities and issues. A past Chairman of the Board of Selectmen, the Planning Board, and the “Lincoln Logs the Future” town wide conference of the early 1990’s, John was passionate about Lincoln and the important issues affecting its future. His focus on public safety and town growth was evident through his work on several committees including the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, the Joint Regional Transportation Committee, the Traffic Management Committee, Police and Fire Chief Search committees, and the Council on Aging.

Outside of town government, John’s involvements included the Board of Trustees of his beloved alma mater St. Mark’s School, the Board of Minuteman Home Care Corp, election to the Massachusetts Republican State Committee, and as a past warden of St. Anne’s-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church.

In lieu of flowers and in commemoration of John's longstanding service to many Lincoln town boards, regional planning organizations, veterans, and senior citizens, gifts may be made towards the establishment of the Caswell Memorial Fund to support public programs and services in Lincoln. Checks should be made payable to the Town Treasurer/Caswell Fund, 16 Lincoln Rd., Lincoln, MA 01773.

Arrangements under the care of Glenn D. Burlamachi, CONCORD FUNERAL HOME, Concord.

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