Edward F. Kovanic of Red Bank passed away peacefully in his home at The Atrium in the early morning of Sept. 19. A Rumson resident for 40 years, Ed previously resided in Caldwell and Livingston. Ed was predeceased by his loving wife, Jane H. Kovanic, whom he has sorely missed since her passing in 2013.
Born in 1930, Ed spent his youth in Wilmington, Delaware. After graduating from the Moore School of Electrical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania in 1952, Ed served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy on the USS Salerno Bay (CVE-110) and USS Missouri (BB-63) at the end of the Korean War. After his naval service, Ed began his career in electrical engineering with Westinghouse.
Ed then went on to earn a master’s degree in electrical engineering from New York University after which he joined Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill. While at Bell Labs, Ed studied for a doctoral degree at the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn where he also served as a member of the teaching staff. Following formation of Project Mallard in late 1967 by then-Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, Ed became chief, Mission Support Division, Joint Engineering Agency at Fort Monmouth. There Ed led efforts for the U.S. Army Communications & Electronics Command to design and implement a Cold War-era strategic communications network connecting the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and Canada.
In the early 1970s Ed was a fellow at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and was the first U.S. Army representative to do so. Ed went on to become division chief, Defense Systems Information Agency at Fort Monmouth.
Ed leaves behind a daughter Kathryn J. Kannenberg (Andrew) of Minnetonka, Minnesota and a son Kenneth E. Kovan (Christine) of Wayne, Pennsylvania, as well as three grandsons, Dr. Steven A. Kannenberg, Mathew P. Kovan, and Henry E. Kovan. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.
A viewing was held Sept. 23 at Thompson Memorial Home, Red Bank. A Mass of Christian Burial was held Sept. 24 at Holy Cross Church, Rumson. Interment will be private at Mt. Olivet Cemetery, Middletown.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Holy Cross Parish.
