Jon Sebastian Thurneysen, CDR, USN-Ret
October 24, 1934 ~ April 10, 2021
Commander Jon Sebastian Thurneysen, 86, passed away at 0441 on 4-10-2021. He retired from the U.S. Navy in 1978 and settled with his family in Vienna, VA where he continued a second 22-year career as a defense analyst, working for Defense Systems Incorporated, CTA Space Systems, Ketron, and Orbital Sciences Corporation.
As the son of Muriel Frances Doe and Wilhelm Thurneysen, he was born on 10-24-1934 in Portland Maine and grew up in Basel, Switzerland where he was classically trained as a pianist and learned to speak 5 languages. He attended Central High School in Denver, CO and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. He was granted a Naval ROTC scholarship to Harvard University and was a member of the Glee Club. In 1956, he graduated with degrees in Mathematics and German and became an Ensign in the US Navy.
He met his wife, Louise Turner Thurneysen, in Washington, DC; and they were married for 60 years while traveling wherever the Navy sent them. Early assignments included the Navy Postgraduate School near Fort Ord, CA, where he earned a Master of Naval Systems Analysis degree and began his thesis work in Industrial Engineering and Operations.
The family had many home bases, including: Monterey, CA; San Diego, CA; Yokohama, Japan; Charleston, SC; Virginia Beach, VA; and multiple homes in Northern Virginia. The Navy life often separated them physically, but there was a constant stream of letters sent from various ships: USS Abbot DD-629, USS Oklahoma City CLG-5, and USS Soley DD-707. In 1970, while serving with the US Naval Support Activity (Saigon, Veitnam), he earned the Bronze Star with valor, the military’s fourth highest commendation.
Jon and Louise attended many United Methodist and Presbyterian churches over the years, and Jon remained active as a tenor in the choir lofts wherever possible. In his later years, they always enjoyed trips to visit Louise’s homestead in Prospect Hill, NC, their small cabin in Romney, WV, and local trips to Riverbend Park, the Kennedy Center and the Washington Cathedral. They were huge followers of the Washington Nationals baseball team.
Jon’s four children and ten grandchildren also survive him. His kids remember cross-country car trips, camping, and hearing books read out loud taking them to foreign places like Middle-earth and Narnia. He was always reading and even before Google he usually had the answer. There were challenging times as well, but the good memories remain, including his piano playing as the kids stood behind him sight-reading through collections of hymns, folk songs, Broadway musicals, and Disney songs. His favorite hymn was “O for a Thousand Tongues” which is the first one in the United Methodist Hymnal.
In the longer term there will be an interment of ashes at Arlington Cemetery, his final home base assignment.
As the son of Muriel Frances Doe and Wilhelm Thurneysen, he was born on 10-24-1934 in Portland Maine and grew up in Basel, Switzerland where he was classically trained as a pianist and learned to speak 5 languages. He attended Central High School in Denver, CO and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. He was granted a Naval ROTC scholarship to Harvard University and was a member of the Glee Club. In 1956, he graduated with degrees in Mathematics and German and became an Ensign in the US Navy.
He met his wife, Louise Turner Thurneysen, in Washington, DC; and they were married for 60 years while traveling wherever the Navy sent them. Early assignments included the Navy Postgraduate School near Fort Ord, CA, where he earned a Master of Naval Systems Analysis degree and began his thesis work in Industrial Engineering and Operations.
The family had many home bases, including: Monterey, CA; San Diego, CA; Yokohama, Japan; Charleston, SC; Virginia Beach, VA; and multiple homes in Northern Virginia. The Navy life often separated them physically, but there was a constant stream of letters sent from various ships: USS Abbot DD-629, USS Oklahoma City CLG-5, and USS Soley DD-707. In 1970, while serving with the US Naval Support Activity (Saigon, Veitnam), he earned the Bronze Star with valor, the military’s fourth highest commendation.
Jon and Louise attended many United Methodist and Presbyterian churches over the years, and Jon remained active as a tenor in the choir lofts wherever possible. In his later years, they always enjoyed trips to visit Louise’s homestead in Prospect Hill, NC, their small cabin in Romney, WV, and local trips to Riverbend Park, the Kennedy Center and the Washington Cathedral. They were huge followers of the Washington Nationals baseball team.
Jon’s four children and ten grandchildren also survive him. His kids remember cross-country car trips, camping, and hearing books read out loud taking them to foreign places like Middle-earth and Narnia. He was always reading and even before Google he usually had the answer. There were challenging times as well, but the good memories remain, including his piano playing as the kids stood behind him sight-reading through collections of hymns, folk songs, Broadway musicals, and Disney songs. His favorite hymn was “O for a Thousand Tongues” which is the first one in the United Methodist Hymnal.
In the longer term there will be an interment of ashes at Arlington Cemetery, his final home base assignment.
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When Jon would come to North Carolina to visit family in the 60s and 70s, we would always go to grandma Kirby’s house. She had a piano in the back room and Jon would always go in and he would play that piano and we would sing old hymns and Christmas songs and whatever we wanted him to play. He was an amazing brother-in-law . I was always so proud my sister found the love of her life soon after moving to DC. I’m going to miss him answering the phone when I call.
RIP Jon.
Dear Louise and family, Jon’s death notice in the Washington Post jumped out at me. It’s not often that I see a Basel family name in in a US newspaper! I am the daughter of Jon’s late cousin, Bernard Koechlin. In the first half of the 1950s, when I was a small child, our family lived in the Boston area. I can remember that when Jon was a student at Harvard he would come over to dinner sometimes. I know that you and Jon kept in touch with my parents over the years. (My mother died in January 2020.) I remember that my mother said she never saw anyone do the New York Times crossword puzzle as fast as Jon! Condolences to you and your family from my brothers and me. Emily Koechlin Takoma Park MD