Obituary of Jan Panek

Jan Panek of Clifton Park NY passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, November 28, 2019. He was 89 years old.  The son of the late Ludvik Panek and Marie Pankova, Jan was born on August 10, 1930 in Benesov, Czechoslovakia.

Jan holds a PhD from Charles University in Prague.  He worked in the research laboratory Vyzkumneho Ustavu Silnoproude Elektrotekniky on insulation coordination.  He began working for the United Nations (UNESCO) in order to get his family safely out from behind the Iron Curtain.  This was his proudest accomplishment, and one for which his family is most grateful.  In 1965 he moved his family to Pakistan where he was a professor in Power Generation and Distribution Systems at University of Lahore. In 1967 he moved with UNESCO to Mexico City to found the graduate program in Electrical Power Generation and Distribution at the National Polytechnic Institute, where he became a Fellow in 1971. That same year he joined General Electric to head the High Power Laboratory in Philadelphia.  In 1978 he relocated to Schenectady as a Section Manager in Power Systems, designing high voltage transmission systems.  He retired from GE in 1994, but continued an international consultancy and taught graduate courses at RPI.  He was a long-time member and Fellow of the international engineering professional associations CIGRE and IEEE.

An award-winning wood turner, he enjoyed wood-turning, carving and making furniture.  He was also an avid outdoorsman, enjoying hiking, fly fishing, skiing, tennis and bike riding.  While he hiked extensively across the US and Canada, he had a particular love of the Adirondacks.  He and his wife Eva travelled the world throughout their time together.  Taky drnkal na kytaru.  He is remembered for his humor, his strength, and the vivid life he led.

He is survived by his wife Eva Panek, daughter Hana (Martin Weber) Panek, son Paul Panek, sister Jirina Krbuskova, grandchildren Julie, Alex, Michael, Brian, and great-grandchildren Isaac, and Adina.

A celebration of his life will be announced in the Spring.

Donations may be made in his memory to the American Cancer Society by going to www.cancer.org