A brilliant researcher and inventor, Roswell Ruka found so much satisfaction in his work that he kept at it until he was nearly 90 years old.

Even then, the World War II veteran with 37 patents to his name wasn’t ready to retire.

“He was one of the oldest employees at Siemens,” said his wife Brent Ruka. “He was 88 years old when he retired. He was working part-time for the last few years and he really enjoyed it. He didn’t want to stop.”

Mr. Ruka, 96, died Dec. 31 of unknown causes at his Churchill home.

He worked for decades, first at Westinghouse Electric, then Siemens, as a research chemist, inventing and perfecting fuel cell generators and other electrochemical systems.

“He really loved what he did and I enjoyed working with him,” said Ed Martin, of Penn Hills, who worked with Mr. Ruka, or “Roz,” as a technician from 1992 to 2009. “He was an outstanding person, and everyone who knew Roz respected him.”

Born in Boscobel, Wis., Mr. Ruka was valedictorian of the Boscobel High School class of 1941. He attended the University of Wisconsin on an academic scholarship and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. He later earned a doctorate in chemistry from the University of Michigan.

“As soon as he got his bachelor’s degree, he was recruited by Westinghouse and relocated to Pittsburgh, then he was drafted,” his wife recalled.

Her husband joined the Navy, serving in the Pacific during World War II as a radio technician, his wife said.

After the war, Mr. Ruka returned to Westinghouse — a veritable brain trust during its heyday.

“There were about 600 Ph.Ds working at Westinghouse at one time,” said Mr. Martin, who started his career with the company in 1962. “They all had these tremendous egos, but Roz didn’t. He wouldn’t make other people look bad.”

Even when Mr. Martin made a mistake, Mr. Ruka never lost his cool, he said.

“He was a total gentleman,” he said. “And he was a super scientist. He was excellent at his job, and he was an excellent person.”

Mr. Ruka continued working when Westinghouse sold its non-nuclear power business to Siemens in 1998 and he finally retired in 2011, when the project group he was working in was closed.

“He would have kept going if he could have,” said Mrs. Ruka, who met her husband 53 years ago in a singles group. They were married in June 1969.

A born tinkerer, Mr. Ruka also had a green thumb and grew more than 60 varieties of daylilies.

“He hybridized some daylilies,” his wife said. “It was just fun for him. He loved gardening. At one point, we had a huge vegetable garden with corn and broccoli.”

He also liked to stay physically fit.

“He was a tennis player and he walked to work,” Mr. Martin recalled.

Mr. Ruka never sought accolades and often went out of his way to get to know his coworkers, Mr. Martin said.

“He had his own office but he would come sit with me and talk at my desk in the hallway,” he said. “I couldn’t ask for a nicer person to work for.”

Mrs. Ruka said she would remember her husband for his kind and gentle nature.

“He was very generous and very sweet,” she said.

Along with his wife, Mr. Ruka is survived by his sons Kurt Ruka, from McKeesport, and Eric Ruka, of East Liberty. 

Funeral services are private.

The family suggests memorial contributions to a favorite charity.

Janice Crompton: jcrompton@post-gazette.com.

First Published: January 7, 2020, 12:27 a.m.