Valère P. Gagnon

Valère  P “Val” Gagnon, March 12, 1933 – October 11, 2024

Valère P “Val” Gagnon, 91, passed away peacefully at his home in East Syracuse, surrounded by his family.

Born in Upper Frenchville, Maine on March 12, 1933, Val was the 13th of 14 children of Philip Wilfred Gagnon and Marie Tardif. He spent his early years on his dad’s 150-acre potato farm and then attended high school at St Francis High School in Biddeford, Maine, graduating in 1951. In 1953 he received a degree in engineering from Ward School of Electronics, now part of the University of Hartford.  He then served two years in the US Army Signal Corps, based in Garmisch, West Germany.

He met the love of his life, Barbara, on a trip back to Maine. They were married in New Haven on September 14, 1957. They moved to Syracuse where they raised five children.

Val began his engineering career at Raymond Engineering in Connecticut.  He moved to General Electric in Syracuse in 1957, working on the Atlas Missile systems and GE’s Radar program, where he became an expert in the emerging field of digital technology.  In 1983 he was assigned to a program that used his expertise in digital design to design special customized semiconductors.  He retired from GE in 1992. 

Drawing on his expertise, Val also taught courses on logic design and digital systems for 12 years at Onondaga Community College.

Val was a master woodworker and builder. He built an addition to the family home from the ground up, teaching himself how to lay bricks so he could build a fireplace with a barbecue pit on the patio side. He also worked with his friend Stan doing home remodeling as a side job.  In addition, he worked on numerous house and furniture projects for his children and grandchildren.

Val was an avid bowler and golfer on the General Electric teams.  Val was a master barbecuer, and enjoyed spending many hours mastering the skill of cooking the perfect roast.  Val was an avid Red Sox fan.

Val will be remembered for being a family man, for his precision, his determination, his helpfulness, his dedication.

Val is predeceased by his parents and by his siblings Wilfred Leonide, Henri, Cecile, Lewis, Lorenzo, Lucille, Leo, Rosaire, Prescille, René, Eva, Louis Philippe and Therese. He is survived by his loving wife Barbara, children Valere Jr “Chip” (Christopher), David, John (Stacy), “his favorite daughter” Karen Gagnon McMahon, Mark (Buffy), daughter-in-law Lisa Kledzik, and grandchildren Nell (Claire), Lucas (Sarah), Julia (Brijan), Eva (Haydyn), Brad (Jalena), Lilah, Abbie (Koichi), Ryan, Ally (Matthew), Taylor, and many nephews and nieces.

Calling hours will be at Mathewson-Forani Funeral home in East Syracuse from 3pm-6pm on Sunday October 13. Services will be at Holy Cross Church in Dewitt on Monday October 14 at 10AM.

In lieu of flowers, in honor of his love for woodworking, donations should be made to Sleep in Heavenly Peace (checks to 201 W Genesee St. #241 , Fayetteville, NY 13066, Paypal link here: https://shpbeds.org/make-donation/)

Leave condolences for the family on the Tribute Wall

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Valère P. Gagnon, please visit our floral store.