To Dr. Russell Jedlicka's Family

Dr. J.
Had always taken the time to show us the way, no matter how trivial or silly the question may seem.
He was one of the few educators who really cared about engineering students progressing through the program. It is with great sadness that he is no longer with us. I will always keep a candle burning from as he had keep the light for us in the darkness.

A great teacher, mentor, professor, and friend. I will never forget your enthusiasm and passion for electrical engineering. You’re an inspiration to all, and you will be missed by all.

A great professor and person. His sense of humor in combination with his intelligence was exceptional. He will be missed but he has left many good things that I guess we all will remember. Because of him, many students graduated and became better persons in their lives with a profession. Dr. Jedlicka was a model of professor.

Dr J was definitely one of a kind. One thing I remember him for was he cared about you as a person. To him it was much more then you being able to pass his class. There were many times when I would see him as I would be going to class, and he would stop me and ask how my semester was going. The EE department will never be the same without him. As one of his students I miss him already, and I know his family must miss him so much. I am so thankful that I was able to get to know Dr. J.

Dr J. was one of the best profs I ever had a chance to study under. No doubt this first couple of test really woke us up with the test medians around 30%, but he never gave up on his students - he just wanted us to learn. I sometimes saw the sadness and disappointment in this eyes when we didn't do well. You knew he cared and that made you care. Emag was a right of passage and I'm glad I had him as my guide. Such a great life, cut so short.

My condolences to his wife and young children.
You will be missed.

Dr. Jedlicka was easily my most favorite Professor I've had as a college student. This was not because he was an outstanding professor, although he was extrodinary and NMSU was blessed by his presence. It was because if his caring nature. I'll never remember after the second time I failed his course, how he told me to stick with it. It was something that was shocking to me, how someone could still respect me after having failed his course twice. But this is the type of person he was. He treated every person with tremendous respect. He would always be interested in your life, a sacrificing trait that I hope to try to mimic in my life. I'll never forget him and my heart and prayers go to his children and wife.

Russell Jedlicka was first and foremost a husband and father. He was also a professor, a mentor, and my friend. For the honor of sharing time with him on this earth I am thankful.

Russ was a man whose academic expectations and work ethic were surpassed only by his good-nature. His energetic personality was unique and wonderful; one never knew quite what to expect when attending a lecture. He taught with unparalleled passion and dedication, giving his best and expecting the same. His courses challenged even the best students, yet he was always willing and able to explain complicated concepts with relevant and useful analogies. He did not consider himself above anyone else, possessing both a doctorate as well as a genuine and unpretentious personality. He spent time with you if needed and always listened genuinely to questions.

Though he walked with somewhat of a limp -and despite having had a quadruple bypass- it was tough to keep up while walking alongside him. Rarely if ever could he be seen using an elevator or driving unnecessarily. He was a man who seemed to consistently give one hundred percent and then some. He lived life to the fullest, and seemed savor every minute.

He wielded a deliciously tenacious wit; his sense of humor was as unique and offbeat as it was side-burstingly hilarious. He always had a clever joke or witty remark at the ready. Though we will miss him greatly, a bounty of great memories ensure that Russ will never be forgotten.

Arturo J. Fountain

Dr. J was the most energetic teacher I've every had. He always kept an open door for students and visitors. Also he always put a lot of care into his students. I had him for 3 classes. It was a lot to absorb but he always helped and encouraged along the way. He went out of his way plenty for his students even if it meant etching boards at his home.
Dr. J used to make us all laugh with his navy jokes and kept class interesting. He was a great teacher to learn from and a great person to know. He will be missed by all that knew him.

I can truthfully say Dr. J was the best professor I've had in college. I am saddened at the loss of a great professor and a man that I truly respected.

Classes with Dr. J were always fun. His chalkboard drawing skills may have required some interpretation, but they were nothing that an aptly placed "And you know this is an airplane , cause it says 'AIRPLANE' right here!" couldn't fix.

Dr. J was always genuinely interested in his student's lives, and whenever seeing him around campus (after the standard right-hand-rule greeting, of course) he would ask how you were doing and how school was going.

I am glad that I got to take a couple courses with Dr. J and get to know him a little bit. It's a real shame that future EE students will not get to learn from him.

I'm really glad to see all the posts on here, and hope that his family knows how much he was loved and appreciated by all his students. You are in my thoughts and prayers.

It feel blessed to have had the opportunity to take most of my upper level courses and capstone with Dr. Jedlicka. He was the reason that I decided to concentrate in Emag. He really was a joy to be around and no matter how busy he was, he always had time for his students(either for a question about homework, or just for a little chat). He was a great professor and a great friend . I will always remember the way he would say "Let me show you a little trick i learned in the navy". The EE department will not be the same without him. It is amazing how many people he has influenced. I have met some people out here in Washington DC that have either taken a class that he taught or actually were in school with him back when he was taking classes.

No other professor I have had could compare to the him. He will be missed by me and many others and I will never forget all the memories I had while in his courses and office.

"...here, let me show you a trick I learned in the Navy", how many times did we hear Jed tell us that? I've never learned so much in any class as I did in Russ's. He was brilliant. He was fun. He as a great great friend who considered his students as equals, never below him. He was my grad advisor of whom it was an honor to work with. It's because of Russ that I now enjoy the best job I've ever had. I never thought I'd be an RF engineer, but Jed helped me make it so. My DEEPEST heartfelt sympathies go to Sue and the kids. May God bless you always, and may my great friend Russ rest in peace. I'll miss him the rest of my life.

This is a very sad time – Russ Jedlicka was a unique and special person. He will be missed by everyone that knew him. Russ and I met way back about 1981 or so at a graduate student’s party at the old carriage house that was behind what is now Glen Cutter Jewelers on El Paseo. I remember admonishing him that I was “Doctor Blevins” to everyone and in particular to him! He often to reminded me of this introduction and would sometimes, but not often, actually call me that. We were friends from then on (even after he himself became a Doctor!).
I have been very fortunate to have known Russ in two aspects of his life – his professional capacity and as his friend. We supported each other during the challenges of academic and professional engineering, both at the EE Department and at PSL. We also helped each other through physical challenges after surgeries and mental challenges after life-redirecting events. I could always talk to Russ about anything and everything.
I greatly appreciated Russ’s sense of humor about the absurdities of life and the world in general. Russ always approached life with a full sense of gusto and the realization that all of our times are limited. He was always deeply concerned and supportive to his family, friends, associates, and students. Again, I, as all of us, miss him terribly and will always keep him in our hearts. His loss is very hard to take.

I have read all of the comments so far and can relate to every single one. I, just like almost everybody else, met Dr. Jedlicka while taking EE 315. We all heard the rumors that his emag class was very hard but it was part of our core curriculum and we all had to take it. I did not realize it at the time, but this was just the beginning.

I ended up taking his EE 453, EE 458, EE 459, EE 541, EE 521, and EE 548. Why did I put myself through so much torture, you might ask? The answer was very simple. Dr. Jedlicka made the field of electromagetics, which is a difficult subject to understand, fun and interesting. It was obvious that he had a passion for the subject matter. He always entered the classroom with a big smile on his face. His personality and sense of humor were unparalleled. We never knew when a funny comment was going to come out of his mouth.

During my years at NMSU, Dr. Jedlicka was my instructor, advisor, and friend. He cared about each and every student. Even if one person did not understand something, like Smith Charts, he would explain it again and again. You could always walk into his office and talk about school or about any problems in your life. He was very dedicated and was always there to help. I would see him come in around 8am each day after dropping off his kids at school and leave in the evening to tuck them into bed.

I am currently working in the RF field and I owe it all to him. He encouraged me when I was down. He saw the potential when I could not. I gave up many times but he did not. My family and I would not be where we are if it was not for him. I am very thankful to have known him.

I am at a loss for words to describe the pain I feel. The college will never be the same. His personality and teaching style will be missed. Even though he is no longer here with us, he will always be with us in spirit and in our hearts. On a couple of occasions, I had the pleasure of meeting his kids and his wife. There are no words to describe their loss. As for the previous comment on hopefully becoming half the man that he was, I could not agree with you more.

I just received the news today that Dr. Russ Jedlicka passed away. From a pause of shock to streams of tears as I left the Logan airport, memories of this amazing man flooded my mind.

Where would I be if I had not been fortunate enough to have been advised by Dr. J? It’s hard to say, but certainly my life would not be the same. He was a large part of the successes I enjoyed during my years at NMSU (and at MIT), as he taught me microwave, antenna & electromagnetic theory, how to design, fabricate and measure an antenna, and how to conduct research. He is THE reason I love Smith Charts & transmission lines (and I was lucky enough, as a TA, to pass on some of his enthusiasm to my students)! Dr. J believed in me in a way that I did not. He is the one who made me believe I would go to MIT.

Often when I look at the Boston skyline, I remember the very first IEEE talk I gave in the Sheraton hotel on our research, and I reflect upon how fortunate I was to have had him as an advisor. Now I realize, more than ever, how profoundly he influenced my life. More likely than not, I would not be here if it weren’t for him.

I’ll never forget his humor, the tricks he taught that he "learned in the navy", his welcoming and respectful attitude, his teaching, and most importantly, his inspirational character.

Dr. J will truly be missed, and it is a tragic shame that more students will not benefit from sharing a classroom with him. My heart goes out to his wife and kids. Certainly, his memory will live on. I will never forget his influence on my life, and countless others.

So many knew Russ as a teacher, I have to tell you that working in direct contact with him, I concluded early on that he was a true genius. He loved RF and cranked out solutions quickly, designs which invariably held up - much of his work is still functioning today. Russ designed the antennas for the ICE (IDE Countermeasure Equipment) which saved lives of American soldiers in Iraq.

I'll also remember his fine sense of humor, he was truly a fine man and it was a great priviledge to know and work with him.

Rest in peace, Russ. And God bless the Jedlicka family, we share your grief.

Thoughts of my friend Russ Jedlicka
Russ the intellectual
After graduating with a degree in Physics and finishing my track eligibility with some graduate credits in Physical Education I took a year off in my home town of Santa Fe to “find myself”. I had really enjoyed Electromagnetics and decided to talk to Russ about graduate school in Electrical Engineering at NMSU. Though Russ wasn’t a professor, and not technically my advisor, he was an instructor and influenced me greatly as a grad student. I had worked as an undergraduate student at PSL and Russ got me a job there again, working in his section on antenna and microwave problems. There are countless amazing Russ stories from PSL but one sticks in my mind particularly……
---- One afternoon I was working in my little office in the back of the lab, most likely on my thesis project measuring the mutual coupling of a microstrip patch array antenna. I heard Russ’ characteristic heavy running steps coming down the hall. When I say running I mean it literally not figuratively!! Russ did that a lot. I think half of Russ’ weekly running mileage was in the halls of PSL!
“Erik we need to build an antenna this afternoon”, he said busting into the room.
“OK, do you have the design”, I asked?
“Not yet, but we need to design, fabricate, test and deliver this antenna to Holloman AFB before tonight” he said seriously.
“What”? This sounded like a semester project to me.
“Yes, there’s a C130 at Holloman heading to Antarctica tonight and they need an S-Band endfire array antenna to mount on the fuselage for some experiment. The one they have isn’t working for some reason. Erik, your microstrip feed is S-Band and if I can design the antenna in the next few minutes, I’ll give you a parts list to get from stock downstairs before they close. We’ll build it test it and ship it with the PSL courier going to Holloman at the end of the day.”
?? Design an antenna in the next few minutes ???
Russ was a master of this kind of practical “get the job done” engineering. And yes we built and delivered the 8 element antenna with radiation pattern and impedance data that evening!
---- I had Russ for at least one of my engineering classes; Microwave Theory. On the first day of class he asked if there were any Home Econ. students in the class. Nobody raised their hands.“Good” he said,“Invariably every semester I get students thinking they were going to learn how to cook a Thanksgiving turkey in under an hour………”
Russ was an outstanding teacher and I learned a great deal from him. I consider him to be one of the masters of Smith Charts and Practical Microwave Theory. I smiled to myself this week when I saw he has an online tutorial on this topic:
http://telemetry.nmsu.edu/~shoran/PDF/SmithCh...

Thoughts of my friend Russ Jedlicka

Russ the athlete

I first met Russ, I believe in the spring of 1980. I had previously met Kenny Stevens and Frank Fitzpatrick in the Taos Cafeteria my first semester at NMSU, the fall of 1979. I was excited about meeting and running with bonefide NMSU college Track athletes and did a lot of running as an extra curricular activity trying to fit in. That spring I entered into a distance relay road race that finished near the football stadium. I somehow found myself in the honorable anchor leg position with a large lead on the fruits of my teammates efforts. With less than a quarter mile remaining I looked back and saw a competitor closing fast. I poured it on with everything I had only to come up short with the hard charging opponent besting me by several yards at the finish. Exhausted, I caught my breath, apologized to my teammates and asked in gasps who that guy was. Maybe he was another NMSU track star? No, that was Russ Jedlicka. I was informed he had been just edged out in a photo finish for winning the prestigious Baylor Pass Run the previous fall, beating ALL the NMSU track participants.

Wow.

“He isn’t a track team member”, I asked?
“No, he is a graduate student working at the Physical Science Lab (PSL). I think he’s from Kansas”, was my teammate’s reply.

Thoughts of Jim Ryan ran through my mind.

---- Over the next years of running NMSU track myself, Russ was a frequent participant in many local races, and though he wasn’t officially on the team we saw him often at serious running events. I participated, with Russ, once in a 24 hour relay at the NMSU track. In the wee hours of the morning we would run our mile, hand off the baton to the next participant, recover a little, lay down with a blanket and doze off just as someone would wake us for our next leg. That was a looooonnng night.

Russ at play

----When I bought my first car in 1986, a Honda Civic, I showed it to Russ.

“How much did this set you back Erik. It’s a fancy car!”, he asked.

“$11,000” I replied.

“Holy Cow, Erik, the sum total of all the cars I’ve bought in my life doesn’t add up to that!”

Russ had more old VWs than anyone I had ever met. Buses and Beetles. At any given time one or 2 would be running. He could change an engine in one of his cars faster than I could change my oil.

---- Working at PSL for awhile, certain things rub off on you like rockets. I bought an Estes model rocket one summer to launch behind Pan Am center. Russ, Bruce Blevins, Scott Hutchison and I went out for the launch. As is often the case there was some wind and high flying model rockets can go a looooong way. I was thinking we’d watch the launch, parachute deployment and landing from beside my car and leisurely walk the distance to retrieve it. After the textbook launch and successful parachute opening I looked down to see Russ running at a full sprint towards the potential landing zone to catch the rocket BEFORE it landed! There was a little Carl Lewis in him. He wasn’t content just watching the thing leisurely drift towards earth, this was a challenge and exciting!!

---- There was no first gear in Russ. He approached everything with gusto. The last time I spent with him was for the annual Grand Canyon rim-to-rim and back run in October 2000. Pete Dinger championed this trip and Russ went on many occasions I believe. That particular year he had been having knee problems, but in true Russ Jedlicka fashion, he went anyway. On the way down on several occasions his knee would buckle sending him flying into the rocks and cactus. By the time any one of us got to him to see if he was OK, he was off and running again……..

That’s our friend Russ. He’s off and running again and we’re all standing around trying to figure out what’s happening…………………………

Russ the athlete

I first met Russ, I believe in the spring of 1980. I had previously met Kenny Stevens and Frank Fitzpatrick in the Taos Cafeteria my first semester at NMSU, the fall of 1979. I was excited about meeting and running with bonefide NMSU college Track athletes and did a lot of running as an extra curricular activity trying to fit in. That spring I entered into a distance relay road race that finished near the football stadium. I somehow found myself in the honorable anchor leg position with a large lead on the fruits of my teammates efforts. With less than a quarter mile remaining I looked back and saw a competitor closing fast. I poured it on with everything I had only to come up short with the hard charging opponent besting me by several yards at the finish. Exhausted, I caught my breath, apologized to my teammates and asked in gasps who that guy was. Maybe he was another NMSU track star? No, that was Russ Jedlicka. I was informed he had been just edged out in a photo finish for winning the prestigious Baylor Pass Run the previous fall, beating ALL the NMSU track participants.

Wow.

“He isn’t a track team member”, I asked?
“No, he is a graduate student working at the Physical Science Lab (PSL). I think he’s from Kansas”, was my teammate’s reply.

Thoughts of Jim Ryan ran through my mind.

---- Over the next years of running NMSU track myself, Russ was a frequent participant in many local races, and though he wasn’t officially on the team we saw him often at serious running events. I participated, with Russ, once in a 24 hour relay at the NMSU track. In the wee hours of the morning we would run our mile, hand off the baton to the next participant, recover a little, lay down with a blanket and doze off just as someone would wake us for our next leg. That was a looooonnng night.

Russ has been a good friend for MANY years and he will be missed greatly. As a teacher myself I am inspired by the posts from his past students. I hope that the students' lives that I touch will think so highly of me.

Russ was a great man and his "Holy,cow!" reverberates through the room as I remember him! I will always remember him for his laugh and smile as well as his easy going manner. Get togethers will not be the same without him with us.