Obituary of Jiri Vlach

Dr. Jiri Vlach, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, passed away on February 11, 2015. He is survived by his son Martin and daughter-in-law Laurie Johnson, grandchildren Claire and Eric and their spouses Jeffrey Yasskin and Pamela, and his grandchildren's mother Irene. He is predeceased by his wife, Dagmar. Dipl. Ing. Jiri Vlach CSc, Docent, was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia on October 5, 1922. His mother died while he was still a child and his father, a teacher, instilled in him the value of education and rational thought. Jiri graduated in 1947 with a Diploma in Engineering from the Czech Technical University, the first of his family to obtain a university degree. He earned his PhD in Electrical Engineering while working as an engineer in Prague. His abilities and skills not only in research but also his knowledge of many languages, including fluency in Czech, Russian, German, and English, led to a position as a visiting professor at University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA in 1966, and finally as a full professor at the University of Waterloo in 1969. According to then current practice, he had to retire in 1997, but remained active at the university for many years, at one point being the oldest recipient of an NSERC research grant. Dr. Vlach received many awards during his long and distinguished career: he became an IEEE Fellow in 1982, was bestowed the IEEE CAS Golden Jubilee Medal (1999), and became Distinguished Professor Emeritus of University of Waterloo in 2000. He was a guest lecturer at universities throughout the world and a prolific publisher of academic papers. He wrote several books and his widely used text Computer Methods for Circuit Analysis and Design has become a classic for generations of engineers. Another of his books, Linear Circuit Theory - Matrices in Computer Applications, was published a year ago, in February 2014. Dr. Vlach's research helped lay the foundation of the surge in electronic innovations over the last 50 years. The many engineering students whom he advised and mentored applied their knowledge to develop the numerous electronic applications that have become essential components of our lives. Throughout his life Jiri was an avid tennis player and a swimmer. He loved canoeing, whether on his beloved Vltava or on the numerous Ontario rivers and lakes. He traveled all around the world his whole life, and took extensive bicycling trips throughout Europe into his 90s. But while Jiri's professional accomplishments were many, and he is well known in the world of engineering, to his family and friends he was much more than that. "Jirka touched many lives, as a family man, as a friend, as a researcher, and as a teacher. For me it was all four, and I can say that besides my parents he was the most influential person in my life." "A discussion with Jirka during his visits to Prague has always opened a new way of thinking for me. He was always interested in my professional career and encouraged me to look abroad." "For myself, I will have wonderful memories of the man he was, and his accomplishments in life as a scholar and as a bon vivant." "Jiri was a fine gentleman and a brilliant man." "He was an intellectually aware individual, even into his 90's, who had a curiosity about the world and the people in it, and a sly sense of humor." "We feel the loss of the man whom we loved so much, whose life was bigger than life itself." A celebration of Jiri's life will be held at the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home, 171 King St. S., Waterloo on Saturday March 14, 2015 at 1pm in the funeral home chapel. Reception will follow immediately in the Fireside Room of the funeral home. Please e-mail jiri@vlach.us if you plan to attend or would like to follow a live video stream. Condolences for the family and donations to Luther Village may be arranged by contacting the Erb & Good Family Funeral Home at www.erbgood.com or 519-745-8445.