Mr. Joseph Robert Beicher

Joseph Robert Beicher, age 90, passed from this earth to return to his Lord on April 9th, 2018. He was an amazing man who made the most of his gifts from God and the generous time he was granted to be with us. He and his high-school sweetheart bride, Betty, would have been married 70 years in May. He had three children with sons and daughters-in-law, three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Mr. Beicher grew up in a modest home with his twin brother in Pennsylvania working hard to help support the family during the Great Depression. They raised chickens and hens and grew vegetables for food, and times were tough as his father and other family members had been coal miners who lost their jobs when the mines closed. At about age 9 or 10, he and his brother were picked up at 4:00 in the morning by a neighbor who owned a bakery to deliver bread before school. He said one of his proudest moments was when he handed his mother a one dollar bill that he had earned for the week of delivering bread. When he was 11 or 12, his father and uncle dug their own 100-foot deep “coal hole” where he and his brother would climb down a ladder then haul coal up in buckets to sort, break up with a hammer and hope to fill a truck load in a week and sell. This was done after a full day in school. A truckload would sell for $10 which the family had to live on for the week. This is where his strong work ethic determination were no doubt born. In high school, he played football and met Betty, the beautiful majorette. She thought he had stood her up on their first date because he didn’t show up to meet her after the game. She found out the next day that he had been in the hospital with a concussion. Fortunately, she believed him, and they’ve been together since. Also in high school, he was among a group of Senior boys who enlisted in the military to serve in WWII and were allowed to graduate in February to start their service. He enlisted in the Navy and served on an ammunition supply ship in the Pacific. He later served in Naval Intelligence in the Korean War where he interrogated Lithuanian prisoners who had been sent by Russians. He knew Lithuanian because his mother escaped Lithuania in 1909 as a child fleeing the Russians, and they spoke the language at home. After the Korean War, he used the GI Bill benefit to earn an Economics degree from Temple University and began a job with Bell Telephone settling into the Telecommunications department. After designing and leading a project for a telecommunications system for a new government building, he was offered a job by the General Services Agency for whom he had done the job. He accepted and worked in that agency before being recognized and offered a job as Program Manager for Communications for a new government agency named NASA. During his time with NASA, he was responsible for all the communications between all NASA centers in the United States and all the tracking stations around the world. He traveled the world extensively and helped negotiate land leases in many countries for NASA tracking stations. He was also one of five persons appointed by President Jimmy Carter to restructure the entire communications system of the U.S. Government. Upon completion of their report and implementation of their recommendations in 1978, he received a certificate of appreciation personally signed by President Carter. His 21 years with NASA in Washington was an exciting era for him and Betty as they traveled the world, attended galas with astronauts, attended an inauguration ball and many other memorable events. He also managed the books for Betty’s fashion store, coached football teams, attended swim meets, played golf and enjoyed life. Following his retirement from NASA he moved to the Atlanta area to work a few years for Northern Telecom before retiring for good. His three children also moved to Georgia, so the family was able to stay close. He continued playing golf, took up tennis and enjoyed many years of family cruises, Friday night dinners, holiday and birthday meals, and weekly Bingo games and shopping excursions with Betty. He had been attending St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Roswell for several years and enjoyed the grace and fellowship he received there. Those that knew Mr. Beicher will remember his drive, intelligence, toughness, tenderness, generosity and quick wit. He somehow made us laugh or be amazed by a new story that we’d never heard before, or maybe one we loved to hear again. He was proud of and loved his family, and most of all the love of his life, “BJ.” We celebrate his life and cherish the memories we have. He is an outstanding example to all of us as illustrated in his own words to a group of Alternative High School students at the end of discussion of his life to them: “When you look back at what I and my family went through during the Depression, and what I attained, it shows you can attain what you strive to do. It’s there, just go get it, just work for it, and don’t let anything bother you. Say, ‘This is my goal; this is what I’m going to do,’ and have the drive to do it. Whatever you have as a hardship, it’s just a hardship temporarily. You go through that, and as I say, it’s there, folks; just go get it.” Visitation will be held on Wednesday, April 11, 2018 at Northside Chapel Funeral Directors between the hours of 4:00pm - 7:00pm.

Mr. Joseph Robert Beicher

May 10, 1927 - April 9, 2018