Hanover, N.H. —
Denis was born in 1925 in Budapest, Hungary, the son of Francis de Kelemen and Sára de Koller. He attended schools in his native country, and earned a degree in Chemical Engineering at the Technical University of Budapest. In 1947 he came to the U.S. and received a PhD in Physical Chemistry from Princeton University in 1951. In the same year, he married Barbara Boushall, who died in 1991 after a 40-year marriage. Dr. Kelemen remarried in 1993, to Joanne Foulk, who had also been widowed a few years earlier.
After receiving his graduate degree Dr. Kelemen was employed by Du Pont in Wilmington, Del. until his retirement in 1987. He dealt with development and marketing activities for a variety of products and services that Du Pont provided to the electronics industry. After their retirement the Kelemens moved to Lyme, N.H.
Dr. Kelemen’s personal interests focused for many years on energy issues, initially with the objective of reducing U.S. dependence on Near-Eastern oil and more recently aimed at mitigating global warming by minimizing reliance on fossil fuels. In the 1970s he participated in “Delawareans for Energy Conservation.” After retirement he experimented with wood pellet burners for replacing oil burners in residential heating systems (assisted by students from Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering), and promoted awareness of wind energy options in the Lyme School. Dr. Kelemen lived in the Upper Valley throughout his retirement, and was active in Conservation Commissions and Energy Committees.
Dr. Kelemen is survived by his second wife, Joanne Foulk; his son, Peter Kelemen; his daughter-in-law, Rachel Cox; and two grandchildren, Sára and Luci Kelemen; as well as four stepchildren; nine step-grandchildren; and three step-great-grandchildren.
At his request, there will be no memorial service.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Cadbury Fund – Kendal at Hanover, 80 Lyme Road, Hanover NH, 03755.