John Quinn Atchley's Obituary
ATCHLEY, JOHN QUINN Born April 9, 1931 in Blue Springs, Missouri and passed away February 21, 2010 in Plano, Texas. John was born to Gladys Mae Quinn, a schoolteacher and Virgil B. Atchley, a railroad electrician. As a teenager during WWII, John showed an interest in the sciences, especially flight, encryption and rocketry. He graduated from William Crisman High School in Independence, MO. in 1949. He married Phaona Mae Adamson, a Registered Nurse on January 1, 1952 in Danforth Chapel at Kansas University, Lawrence, KS. John was called up from R.O.T.C. as a 2nd Lieutenant into the 3rd U.S. Army in February, 1954. He was selected to attend Werner Von Braun’s missile school at Red Stone Arsenal in Huntsville, AL. The family moved to Dallas, Texas; John marketed isotopic devices with Nuclear Chicago from 1959 to 1962. In 1963 the family moved to Houston, Tx. where John developed and marketed computerized guidance and telecommunications systems for NASA. Following that, the family moved back to Dallas where he went to work for E-Systems, Inc. as Senior Strategic Planning Specialist. There he was responsible for marketing military communication and early warning systems to the U.S. Military Branches and U.S. Allies; he retired from E-Systems after 15 years. John completed a M.S. at the University of Texas at Dallas in 1975, majoring in International Marketing & Finance. John will be remembered for his gentleness, kindness, warmth and charm, his unceasing wit, his humility and his wonderful voice. John had many, many friends. The marital bond of John and Phaona lasted a blissful 58 years and produced a loving and close-knit family. John is survived by his wife of 58 years, Phaona Adamson Atchley; daughters, Dana Susanne Atchley Hall and Jane Claire Butler and husband Carl Edward Butler; grandchildren, Jenalyn Deja Hall, Lillie Mae Butler and John Rhett Butler; brother-in-law, Lawrence Adamson; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. He is preceded in death by Son-in-law Rex Alan Hall and beloved dog Killer.
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