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In Memoriam
Raymond K. Arzinger
 

April 26, 2004--Raymond K. Arzinger, 75, of Newark, Getty Oil executive, community leader and former member of UD’s Board of Trustees, died April 21 at his home.

Born in Lyndhurst, N.J., Mr. Arzinger was graduated with honors from Rutherford, N.J., High School and then enlisted in the Navy's pilot training program. After his Navy service, he completed his college education at Fairleigh Dickinson University with a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering.

In 1952, Mr. Arzinger became a maintenance and construction engineer with Tidewater Oil Co. in Bayonne, N.J. In 1954, Tidewater sent him to Delaware as part of a small team investigating the site at Delaware City for a new refinery. After construction was completed, he switched to the operations department and worked his way up through various positions to become refinery manager in 1972 and vice president in 1980. The refinery had in the meantime changed its name to Getty Refining and Marketing Co. As Getty's senior official on the East Coast, Ray also served as vice president of the Getty Fleet Corp.

Mr. Arzinger was instrumental in the firm's making major financial contributions to the University of Delaware's Morris Library, the Christiana Hospital, the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, the Grand Opera House and many other charities.

From 1984-97, Mr. Arzinger was a University of Delaware trustee, serving as a member of the Committee on Grounds and Buildings, the Trustee/Faculty Committee on Honorary Degrees and Awards, the Committee on Science, Agriculture and Engineering, the Athletics Visiting Committee and the Audit Visiting Committee and as an adviser on land-use issues. When he stepped down, Mr. Arzinger said, "For the past 13 years that I've been on the board, it has been a real privilege for me, not only for having an opportunity to try to make a difference, but also, personally, the friendships I've been able to make, both with you, the members of the board, the administration, faculty, staff."

He also served as a director and member of the executive committee of the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce; a director of the Medical Center of Delaware Foundation, the Grand Opera House, Artisan's Savings Bank and the Delaware Safety Council; a trustee of the Delaware chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society; a sponsor of the World Affairs Council; vice chairperson and member of the executive committee of the Business Round Table of Delaware; and a member of the Wilmington Rotary Club. He was a leader of both Gov. Castle's transition team and Gov. Peterson's economy committee. He also served a term in the National Defense Executive Reserve of the U.S. Department of the Interior.

He was formerly a member of the University and Whist Club, and he and his wife, Fran, were charter members of the Carpenter Club and previous members of the Delaware Diamond Society.

He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Fran; one son, Raymond F. Arzinger, and his wife, Pam, of Wilmington; and two granddaughters, Katrina "Katie" and Stephanie "Stevie" Arzinger, both of Wilmington.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 1 p.m., Monday, April 26, at Holy Angels Roman Catholic Church, 82 Possum Park Rd., Newark, where friends may call after noon. Entombment will follow in All Saints Cemetery, 6001 Kirkwood Highway, Wilmington.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, 2 Mill Rd., Suite 106, Wilmington, DE 19806.