One - singular, unique. On the fifth of June, 1968, Cary Hunter graduated first
in his class at USAFA. He received a Certificate of Merit from the Colorado Engineering
Council and was a member of CS-27 when he graduated. As a characterization of
who and what he was, this merely scratches the surface. During his Air Force career
he worked in Southern California at SAMSO, the Space and Missile Systems Office,
the predecessor to Space Command. His contributions included helping to develop
an astrogator, a sextant for astronauts for the Apollo program. In his off time
he modified a panel truck into a camper-van and lived in a parking lot in Manhattan
Beach so he could grab his board and hit the waves when the surfing was good.
Following his service he decided on a solo walk across the United States. Unlike
Forrest Gump, Cary was a meticulous planner. He pre-positioned supplies along
his route, marking them with oranges flags. Beginning in LA he got as far as Winslow
Arizona where he had to abandon the effort. When his brother Alan came to pick
him up, he wasn’t expecting Grizzly Adams and so passed him by once before
the spark of recognition fired. Cary’s intellect and eclecticism were the
basis of stories that would astound and delight. He effortlessly and in an unassuming
manner commanded the center of attention. One summer he took a job feeding wood
into a chipper so he could work on his approach to unification of Einstein’s
theories and the development of the Grand Unified Theory of the universe. The
story of his getting a job in Silicon Valley in the early 1980’s is just
as outrageous but totally indicative of Cary. On a Friday he interviewed for a
job as a programmer at a San Jose tech firm. Although he had never worked as a
programmer or worked on their computer, a Digital minicomputer, (the PDP-11, for
computer historians), he asked to borrow the manual over the weekend. He was hired
on Monday and began working on a system he was unfamiliar with until 3 day before.
Cary was always a very private person he was a wonderful brother who gave what
he could when he could. He had a special fondness for his nieces and nephews and
they have extremely fond memories of their time with Cary. Cary passed away on
the 28th of February 2008 in Vancouver, Washington. Born on December 6, 1946 in
Glendale, California, Cary was 61 years old. He is survived by his sisters, Anita
Hunter of San Diego, California, Jeanne Wall of St. George, Utah, and Marie Cogley
of Washougal, Oregon, brothers Alan Hunter of Tempe Arizona and Lynn Hunter of
Bakersfield, California, and numerous nieces and nephews. Interment was held at
the Willamette National Cemetery in Portland, Oregon. Memorial Donations: American
Cancer Society, PO Box 22718, Oklahoma City OK 73123-1718 or online at www.cancer.org.
Memorials may be shared at the Brown’s
Funeral Home. (Anita Hunter, J.B. Schroeder '68, Tom Vail '68 and Alan
Hunter '72)
One - singular, unique. On the fifth of June, 1968, Cary Hunter graduated first
in his class at USAFA. He received a Certificate of Merit from the Colorado Engineering
Council and was a member of CS-27 when he graduated. As a characterization of
who and what he was, this merely scratches the surface. During his Air Force career
he worked in Southern California at SAMSO, the Space and Missile Systems Office,
the predecessor to Space Command. His contributions included helping to develop
an astrogator, a sextant for astronauts for the Apollo program. In his off time
he modified a panel truck into a camper-van and lived in a parking lot in Manhattan
Beach so he could grab his board and hit the waves when the surfing was good.
Following his service he decided on a solo walk across the United States. Unlike
Forrest Gump, Cary was a meticulous planner. He pre-positioned supplies along
his route, marking them with oranges flags. Beginning in LA he got as far as Winslow
Arizona where he had to abandon the effort. When his brother Alan came to pick
him up, he wasn’t expecting Grizzly Adams and so passed him by once before
the spark of recognition fired. Cary’s intellect and eclecticism were the
basis of stories that would astound and delight. He effortlessly and in an unassuming
manner commanded the center of attention. One summer he took a job feeding wood
into a chipper so he could work on his approach to unification of Einstein’s
theories and the development of the Grand Unified Theory of the universe. The
story of his getting a job in Silicon Valley in the early 1980’s is just
as outrageous but totally indicative of Cary. On a Friday he interviewed for a
job as a programmer at a San Jose tech firm. Although he had never worked as a
programmer or worked on their computer, a Digital minicomputer, (the PDP-11, for
computer historians), he asked to borrow the manual over the weekend. He was hired
on Monday and began working on a system he was unfamiliar with until 3 day before.
Cary was always a very private person he was a wonderful brother who gave what
he could when he could. He had a special fondness for his nieces and nephews and
they have extremely fond memories of their time with Cary. Cary passed away on
the 28th of February 2008 in Vancouver, Washington. Born on December 6, 1946 in
Glendale, California, Cary was 61 years old. He is survived by his sisters, Anita
Hunter of San Diego, California, Jeanne Wall of St. George, Utah, and Marie Cogley
of Washougal, Oregon, brothers Alan Hunter of Tempe Arizona and Lynn Hunter of
Bakersfield, California, and numerous nieces and nephews. Interment was held at
the Willamette National Cemetery in Portland, Oregon. Memorial Donations: American
Cancer Society, PO Box 22718, Oklahoma City OK 73123-1718 or online at