Thursday, October 27, 2011
Our deepest sympathies and thoughts:
Les meant a lot to me and my family in many ways. As the aerostat depot manager, Les offered me my first job out of college as a mechanical engineer. I remember clearly the interview in Hangar B, no air conditioning, Les smoking a cigar and wearing a shirt and tie. He
liked my grades but said that he wanted to hire me because he appreciated the path it took me to get through school. In retrospect, he was basically offering me a job based on his gut feeling of my character, not my accolades. I must say I enjoyed working for Les better than any other manager ever, period!
The TV Marti was a great program to work. Les was responsible for winning it, keeping it and providing a bright work environment. Pete Gelzinis and I were at the antenna range after a long night of S-Band antenna testing. Les came in just after sunrise to let us know we had just won the program. After some revelry, Les asked Pete jokingly if he could trust me with all of the ME work and they both said yes. With this task, Les gave me the opportunity to be fully responsible for a higher level engineering task. I often think about the lessons learned from that experience today. Currently, as a chief systems engineer at Harris, I remember the efforts we went through, the positive outlook, the encouragement and confidence in the team, and the customer focus Les instilled. I feel that this has helped me with some of the successes I have had. By the way, that system for various political reasons could not be fully tested on site prior to its first mission. We threw the switch the very first time and it worked flawlessly. Les was walking on air for days…
I spent many months in the Keys at Cudjoe where Les was once the site manager. Les was human and was not always everybody's best friend there, but virtually everybody there could think of Les with a story in mind. With his confidence in people's character and ability, he took the personal risk and effort (not a small task) in getting several people promoted from the technician to the engineering rank. I can't think of any case where his judgment in this area failed. When Les took the GE retirement and went to Loral, a true sparkle was gone at 7700 Technology Drive.
Les had an open door policy at work as well as at home. I can remember stopping by his condo in Melbourne on several occasions (in my bachelor days) at dinner time. Les always offered, gladly, a place setting at the table and a drink to go with it. I have been blessed with the opportunity to get know his family over the years. I remember Jennifer working in purchasing with a very young Kyle in a car seat. One time at Patrick, Les asked Curt Campbell and me to help fix her car before she had to pick Kyle up from daycare. The first time I met Clay was at the airport in Orlando. Les and I had just come back from a trip to Quincy for TV Mari. Clay was in serious trouble as he had stayed out all night and Carolyn was livid. Dad was forgiving… Through Les, my wife Leslie and I became good friends with Diana and then later, Jorge. Today, we still keep in touch and our children know each other well. Les and Carolyn's home in Ocala has remained open to this day and our families remain close.
Aerostat was a great place to work and I must thank Les for the opportunity that allowed me to meet some of the best friends of my life and provided the professional learning opportunities that still serve me today. Some of us old depot helium heads don't really get together much these day, but I know we will always think of Les as part of that group. He almost always had something positive to say and really saw the best in people. He will truly be missed but always with the fondest and warmest of memories. I know this is a sad time, but I can't help but think of him with a smile.
With our sincerest sympathy,
Paul and Leslie Pilipovich
and Family
Ocala (352) 414-4206 | The Villages (352) 561-8048 
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