Samuel Wolkow

Samuel Wolkow of Topsham, Maine died on July 18, 2009 at Amenity Manor in Topsham.

Mr. Wolkow was born in New York on April 21, 1920. He married Evelyn (Peck) Wolkow on October 27, 1946.

Mr. Wolkow attended New York University School of Engineering and was a registered professional engineer.

He was employed by the Maritime Administration Department of Commerce as a Naval Architect/Marine Engineer for over forty years. In this capacity he was in charge of administrating shipbuilding construction contracts at various shipyards throughout the United States as the Government’s Construction Representative. In 1974 he was awarded the Department of Commerce Bronze medal for sustained superior performance.

Mr. Wolkow was a World War II veteran serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps.

He was a member of the National Society of Professional Engineers, the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Society of Testing Materials (ASTM). He served as the national secretary of the ASTM Shipbuilding Standards Committee for four years.

Upon retirement from government service in 1980, he entered private practice as an engineering/management consultant and also served as an expert witness in legal matters involving admiralty and contract law.

He was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Brunswick and served as Chairman of the Board of Management in 1984.

He was a volunteer at the Museum of Art at Bowdoin College and was at one time, a volunteer tour guide at the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath, Maine.

He was an avid sports enthusiast and participated regularly in track events in the Maine Senior Games program from its inception in 1976.

He was predeceased by his beloved wife of 62 years, Evelyn Peck Wolkow in 2008; a sister, Mrs. Henry (Elizabeth) Baylis in 1995; and a brother Jack Wolkow in 2008.

He is survived by a daughter, Michelle Guptill and her husband Charles of Brunswick, Maine; a son Jonathan Wolkow of Saco, Maine; three grandchildren, Jessica Ralston and her husband Shaun of Bow, New Hampshire; Ryan Guptill of Brunswick, Maine; Kathryn Guptill of Manhattan, New York, and two great grandsons, Andrew and Samuel Ralston of Bow, New Hampshire.

In accordance with his wishes, there will be no funeral. A private family memorial will be held at a later date.

Arrangements are by the Kincer Funeral Home, Richmond.