At the age of ten my home town of Beltz, Bessarabia (now Moldova) was destroyed by the Nazis. I survived the ravages of World War II by escaping to Tajikistan. The threat of starvation forced me to quit school and work full time at the age of twelve.
To escape Soviet anti-Semitism and reach America, I crossed many borders illegally and trekked across half of Europe living in Displaced Persons camps in Italy. At nineteen, I arrived in America, where I earned a Bachelor's degree from CCNY and a Master's from Columbia University, both in electrical engineering. In various engineering management positions, I contributed to the success of Apollo and Surveyor lunar explorations, defense satellites, and the Gamma Ray Observatory spacecraft. I also cofounded RFA Associates, a software engineering company. I am currently retired. My wife, Annette and I live in Rancho Santa Fe, California. We have four children and six grandchildren.