HUGHES Eugene Thomas Hughes Jr. Western Electric exec and decorated WWII veteran Eugene Thomas Hughes Jr. of Madison died on Aug. 3, 2007.
Mr. Hughes was born in Elizabeth and attended St. Benedicts Preparatory School. After gradation, he studied electrical engineering at Newark College of Engineering and began working at Western Electric Company, part of the Bell Telephone System. After World War II broke out, Mr. Hughes joined the U.S. Army Air Force and became a B-29 pilot and member of the 498th Bombardment Group. He was awarded a variety of medals, including the Distinguished Flying Cross. Mr. Hughes married his wife of 59 years, Olga (Kulich), in 1948. He returned to Western Electric, where he held a variety of managerial positions until his retirement in 1980. Eugene and Olga Hughes spent their retirement years in Port St. Lucie, Fla., and Madison, and enjoyed traveling and spending time with family and friends. Mr. Hughes was an avid golfer and a member of the Canoe Brook Country Club in Summit and the Sand Piper Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Besides his wife, Olga, Mr. Hughes is survived by a son, Glen Hughes of Madison; a daughter, Susan Hughes Banning of Wayland, Mass.; three grandchildren, Alexander, Jay and Zoe Banning; a sister, Elinor Cummings of North Bern, N.C., and various of nieces and nephews.
Donations in his memory may be made to Atlantic Hospice, 33 Bleeker St., Millburn, N.J., 07041.
Source: The Star-Ledger 12 August 2007