Trevor Clarence "TC" (Chad) Looney, 86, beloved husband and father, passed away at home Friday, January 20, 2017, due to a recent heart condition. Chad Looney was born in Kingston, Jamaica, on April 2, 1930. When he was six months old, the family moved to Montana. They lived there until his father joined the Navy in 1943. After graduation from Basic High School in Henderson, Nevada, he attended Stanford University. In 1950, he married his high school sweetheart, Betty Rostine. He received a BS degree in Physics from Stanford in 1952 and went to work for Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, NM.
He retired from Sandia in 1992, after a 40 year career as an Instrumentation Engineer. During his career, he measured the effects of atomic explosions at Eniwetok Atoll, Bikini Atoll, and the Nevada Test site. He provided instruments and RF telemetry to test components for atomic bombs designed by Sandia. He instrumented small rockets that were launched from Tonopah, Nevada; Fairbanks, Alaska; Fort Churchill, Canada; and Kauai, Hawaii. After retirement, he and Betty toured most of the West by car, and took several cruises with their family. He enjoyed hiking, reading, and playing with his computer.
He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Betty Looney; his son, Bradley Looney and wife, Aida Looney, of Albuquerque NM; daughter, Valerie Looney Dean and husband, W. Dennis Dean, of Burleson, TX; son, David Looney and wife, Ruth Looney, of Beaufort, SC; five grandchildren, Shana Looney, Erika Looney Miller, Sierra Dean Quinonez, Sonya Looney Ewonus, and Brian Looney; and three great-grandchildren.
The family will hold a private memorial service.