In Memoriam
Professor Leslie H. Sperling
  - 2016

One of the founding members of the Polymer Science & Engineering program at Lehigh University, Lesley Sperling, died at his home on February 1, 2016.

Dr. Sperling was a professor emeritus at Lehigh University after teaching at Lehigh for over 45 years.

Dr. Sperling was internationally known for his work with polymer materials, and mentored many students and post-docs. He was honored as a Fellow of the American Chemical Society in 2010.

Les received a B.S. Chemistry from the University of Florida in 1954, a M.S.in Chemistry from Duke University in 1957, and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from Duke University in 1959.  His PhD thesis topic was “Solution properties of cellulose esters.” Initially, he worked at Buckeye Cellulose Corp. from  Oct. 1958-June, 1965.  From July 1965-July 1967, Les was a Post Doc at Princeton University with Prof. Tobolsky.   He joined Lehigh University in 1967 and retired in 2002. He held the rank of Professor in both the Chemical Engineering Department and the Materials Science and Engineering Department.  During the larger part of his time at Lehigh, Les was highly active in research that focused on interpenetrating polymer networks, IPNs.

His efforts at ACS have included the POLY/PMSE Polymer Education Committee and the ACS Nomenclature Committee, as well as serving PMSE as Member at Large.  With the Poly Ed. Committee, his main activity has been interacting with chemistry book authors, trying to get them to include more polymer topics.  Les was selected as a PMSE Fellow in 2002 and as an ACS Fellow in 2010. In 2012, Les won the PMSE Distinguished Service Award.

Les was an avid gardener, cultivating his own grapevines for winemaking. He developed prizewinning wines in his "Leaky Cork Winery" and published a guidebook for amateur winemakers. He was a wine judge, and served as President of the Educational Foundation of the American Wine Society. Les was an active member of the Keneseth Israel Temple. He helped lead the K.I. "Mitzvah Day" program for over 25 years, organizing volunteers to work in hospitals on Christmas day to give employees the morning off to spend with their families. Les Sperling truly relished his work and his family, and lived his life to the fullest. He succumbed to Alzheimer's disease in the end, but his indomitable spirit will live on in those who loved him dearly. Survivors: Les was married to Caroline (Bonnie) Neill Sperling, whom he met as a graduate student at Duke University, for 58 years. He was a proud parent of two daughters, Reisa Sperling, MD, and Sheri Leigh O'Connor, MFA, and a beloved grandpa to Ryland, Tresten, Aubrey, and Lyra.