BASIL (WASYL) FEDUN, Ph.D., age 84, beloved husband of the late Nadya (nee Jakymiw); loving father of Michael (wife Tamara); devoted grandfather of 1LT Basil Marlowe Fedun (wife Ainslee) and Nadya Florence Fedun; cherished son of the late Michael and Theodosia (nee Pansiuk); dearest brother of Ihor M. Fedun (wife Galina) and the late Bohdan M. Fedun (wife Emma).
Basil was born on February 6, 1933 in Klekotiw, Ukraine, and passed away on August 27, 2017. Basil came to America in 1948, when he was only 16 years old. He earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and his master’s degree and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Case Western Reserve University. He worked in the defense industry, and was an expert in torpedo hydrodynamics.
Basil enjoyed beekeeping, cross-country skiing, and classical and jazz music. He was passionate about tennis and was playing only a few weeks before he passed away. An eternal optimist, Basil was always at the door with a smile, a warm embrace, and a Slavic kiss on the cheeks. Music always played, and he lived by the maxim “A guest in the house is like God in the house!” Basil will be dearly missed.
All services private. Cremation by DeJohn Crematory. Arrangements by THE DeJOHN Funeral Home & Crematory of Chardon (formerly Ritondaro).
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Tom Frew
Dear family. So very sorry and sad to hear about Basil’s passing. I played tennis with him for many years. He was always so kind and a very determined tennis player. He was a great storyteller and I always enjoyed a cup of coffee with after a match. He was smart and informed but never arrogant. I will miss seeing him this tennis season. My condolences. Tom Frew
Rich Holzheimer
I am a tennis friend of Basil’s and wanted you to know how very much we will all miss him. Always had a smile and seemed to perk up anyone needing it. I enjoyed the many discussions on controversial subjects he seemed to bring up. i will miss him very much as we all will. he was a wonderful man.
Martin Schulz
So sorry to hear of your loss. I will always remember his vibrant smile and engaging conversation. He will be missed by many. Martin Schulz & family.
Michael Johnson
Basil and I worked together for many years, and he was always an inspiration to all of us around him and an amazing human being for all he had been through during his life and his always joyfully being.
This is indeed, sad news.
William T. Parker
I was watching the news tonight about the Ukraine war and my thoughts went back to my days as a graduate student in Electrical Engineering at Case Western Reserve (Case Institute of Technology at the time) from 1962 to 1964. I thought of one of the most impressive grad students I knew at the time: Basel Fedun. His name was so unique I decided to Google him and to my astonishment, I found this!
He and I never connected after grad school. But in our grad student chats late at night in the department offices he left a very strong impression on me. First, he was an excellent engineer. But it was also very interesting to hear his views on Russia which have now turned out to be so true. It was a privlege to know him.
I want to express my very belated sympathy to his family and, perhaps, to offer comments from a different perspective than those who knew him later in life.
Bill Parker M.S.E.E. CIT 1964, M.D. CWRU 1976