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Veljko Milenkovic, age 86, died April 15, 2009 at Dorchester Health Care, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, where he had received treatment and care for four years for the effects of a progressive neurological condition.
He was born June 3, 1922 in Zagreb, the capital city of Croatia, then part of Yugoslavia and now an independent republic. His first career was as an auditor for farmers' cooperatives in his native land. A native speaker of Croatian, Veljko struggled with French, although he was called upon by resistance fighters to interpret for French-speaking RAF flyers from British Mandate Palestine whom they were rescuing from behind enemy lines. Later on, however, Veljko could offer help with spelling, and grammar in German, English, and Latin.
As a refugee in the aftermath of WW-II, he initiated his education in a new career as an engineer in Munich, later completing his undergraduate degree at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) after his arrival in Chicago, where he also earned the PhD in Engineering Mechanics for work on the reflection of sound waves from an underwater elastic sphere. Highlights of his career as a research engineer include work for the United States Army on the ballistics of fin-guided artillery, the motion control system for the pioneering AMF Versatran robot, the constant-velocity shaft drive for the locomotive and train car roller test stand for the US Department of Transportation rail test facility in Pueblo, Colorado, the automatic mail sorting machine for the US Post Office where he worked at both GATX in Chicago and Toshiba in Japan, and methods of robot path control developed at Ford Motor Company. His 25 patents range from a bicycle automatic transmission, a mechanism for guiding trains at high speed, and a wide-range-of-motion robotic wrist. Veljko had also served as full-time faculty at University of Colorado-Boulder and later as part-time faculty at Northwestern University.
He is preceded in death by his wife Maria of over 50 years and by his brother Zoran. He is survived by daughter Ada Milenkovic Brown and spouse Frank Brown, who reside in Winterville, North Carolina, son Paul Milenkovic and spouse Cynthia Jasper, who reside in Madison, Wisconsin, son Victor Milenkovic and spouse Lisa Ventry Milenkovic, who reside in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and by four grand children.
A lover of the out-of-doors, Veljko with his wife Maria acquired property near Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, which they had developed as a tree farm and in recent years has been managed by Paul and Cynthia. Veljko and Maria shared a passion for art, spending their time in retirement frequenting the galleries of the Door Peninsula and taking classes in painting from masters of the Door County fine arts community.
Funeral services will be 11:00 AM Saturday April 18, 2009 at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Rev. Carl Schmitt officiating. Entombment will be at Holy Name of Mary Cemetery. Visitation will be from 10:00 AM until the time of services. |
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