BUCKSPORT – Delmar R. Raymond, 68, died Nov. 10, 2011, with his family by his side at his home in Kent, Wash. He was born March 12, 1941, in Farmington, the son of Richard and Phyllis Raymond.
Del received a bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate in chemical engineering from the University of Maine between 1965 and 1969. During his career he held many leadership positions first with St. Regis Paper Co., West Nyack, N.Y., and then with Weyerhaeuser, Federal Way, Wash. While at Weyerhaeuser from 1977 to 2005 he directed technology programs in environment, health, safety, energy production and mill energy optimization. From 1989 to 1992 he was the general manager of Sensor & Simulation Products, a company that built and sold sensor and pilot plant equipment in the U.S., Europe and Japan, and created a foreign subsidiary in Sweden for serving European markets for the company. Between 1992 and 2005, Del was the director of Strategic Energy Alternatives for Weyerhaeuser Co. He retired in 2005 and successfully pursued his own company as Del Raymond Consulting Services stemming from his strong interest in thermo-chemical and biological conversion technologies and specializing in “linking technology with strategy.” Throughout his career, Del was the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions including: the President’s Award from Weyerhaeuser Co. in 1987 for forming a new division of the company and in 1997 for leading the Agenda 2020 industry technology visioning process; University of Maine 1993 Distinguished Engineering Award; U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Industrial Technology Partner of the Year award in 2000; TAPPI Fellow in 2003; University of Maine Pulp and Paper Foundation honor award; and the AIChE Forest Products Division award for outstanding chemical engineering contributions. Delmar was also a known leader and member of numerous committees and divisions such as chairman of the American Forest & Paper Association’s Chief Technology Officers Committee that provided leadership to Agenda 2020 from 1995 to 2005; member of TAPPI’s board of directors from 2000 to 2002; past chairman of University of Maine Pulp and Paper Foundation Summer Institute, Research and Curriculum committees; past chairman of American Institute of Chemical Engineers Forest Productions Division; and founding member of Forest Biproducts Research Institute Advisory Board.
He is survived by his loving wife, Barbara of Kent, Wash.; daughter, Tonia and her significant other, Arthur, of Kent, Wash.; son, Erick and his wife, Shawna, of Montverde, Fla.; grandchildren, Delmar, Makaila, Crystal and Samantha of Kent, Wash.; brother, Dale and his wife, Alyson, of Rockbridge Baths, Va.; nieces, Dorrie of Belmont, Mass., and Alicia of Richmond, Va.; and nephew, Donald of Newnan, Ga.
Visitation will be held 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17, at Mitchell-Tweedie Funeral Home, 28 Elm St., Bucksport. Funeral services will be held 2 p.m. Friday at Elm Street Congregational Church with the Rev. Linda Smith officiating. Interment will be at Silver Lake Cemetery, Bucksport.