Obituary of Phillip Mertens

Phillip R. Mertens, 91, of Glenville NY passed away peacefully in his sleep and was welcomed into heaven by his mother and father, Beatrice and Charles Mertens, his first wife June Pauline Mertens (Mullee), and sister Beverly Mertens (Myers) and brother Maynard C. Mertens, his son Daniel A. Capobianco of Lawrenceville GA, his cats Samantha and Cinder, and granddaughter Melissa (Missy) Mertens of Panton VT and many of his “cronies” he worked with during his 42 year career at Knolls Atomic Power Lab in Schenectady NY. He is survived by sons Paul Capobianco of Maysville GA, Matthew P Mertens of Panton VT, Mark C Mertens of Schenectady NY, granddaughter Rheanna R Mertens of Woburn MA, and many nieces, nephews, and grandchildren. Phillip graduated from Nott Terrace High School in 1950 and went to work at Knolls Atomic Power Lab (KAPL) as a grounds keeper. While working as a “soda jerk” at St. Claire’s Pharmacy he met his first wife June P Mullee who lived 4 doors down from him on McClelland Street. On July 1st, 1954 they were married and on June’s birthday, June 11th, 1955 Matthew was born and shortly thereafter on April 27th, 1956 Mark was born. Unfortunately, June was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma during the pregnancy and was not expected to live more than 6 months. Fortunately, through God’s will she survived until passing away on April 10th, 1962. During this troubling time for Phillip, he was invited by KAPL to enroll at RPI with tuition grants which he did in 1958. He attended night school and graduated from RPI on June 12th, 1964 with a BS in Metallurgical Engineering and was awarded the Matthew Albert Hunter Prize in Metallurgical Engineering presented to the senior in the Department of Materials Engineering who presents the best thesis in the field of metallurgy and was also awarded the Scott Mackey Award presented to the senior in the Department of Materials Engineering who has given of his time and effort to the service of others without seeking recognition or acclaim. During Phillips 42 year career at KAPL he was involved with the design and testing of nuclear reactors for the Navy’s Los Angeles Attack and Trident submarines and worked twice for several years in Connecticut down at Electric Boat in Groton, CT overseeing the installation and testing of these reactors. Phillip met his second wife Carman Capobianco (LaMarca) who worked at KAPL and they were married August 24th, 1963 bringing her sons Daniel Capobianco and Paul Capobianco into the Mertens family. Phillip was a Sgt E-5 in the 105th Infantry from 1953 to 1955 and was a Licensed Professional Photographer. He enjoyed spending time with his family and friends and was an avid bowler, handball, and squash player and enjoyed fishing on area waters both during the summer and winter ice fishing. He also enjoyed the family gatherings for holidays, birthdays and anniversaries. In 1969 he took the family to CA to visit some of his high school friends and Carman’s brother Geno in a tag along 20” trailer with our cats. We took the southern route out and the northern route back and we got to see the Grand Canyon, Mohave Desert and other natural wonders. Phillip was a quiet gentle soul who enjoyed simple pleasures and was always there to help a family member in need. Upon his retirement from KAPL in 1992, he enjoyed spending lunch time with his “cronies” from KAPL and taking life slow and easy. He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2014 which unfortunately led to his having to be admitted to Shaker Place in July of 2020 until his passing. Services will be held Tuesday 12:00 noon at First Presbyterian Church, 209 Union Street, Schenectady NY 12305. Visiting hours will precede the service from 10am-12pm at the church. In lieu of Flowers the family requests donations be made to the National Parkinson’s Foundation at www.parkinsons.org