Mitchell C. Ruda

Mitch was born May 29, 1950 in New York City, the first child of Florence and Albert Ruda, and passed away August 31, 2013. He is survived by his beloved wife, Wendy, and his daughter, Arielle, who was the light of his life. Mitch spent his early years in Manhattan, in an apartment facing the East River. He was a graduate of Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan, and received his degree in Astrophysics from Colgate University in 1971. He was accepted into the graduate optics program at the University of Rochester where he excelled, receiving a Master's degree in 1973. He then applied for a position as a Research Associate at the Optical Sciences Center, a relatively new facility at the University of Arizona and was offered the position. Impressed with the clear, beautiful blue skies of Tucson and the pretty coeds on campus, he accepted. While at the U of A, Mitch was involved in the Multiple Mirror Telescope slated for the Mt. Hopkins Observatory, and the work he did allowed him to obtain his PhD in Optics from the University in 1979. He was then hired as a full time technical Vice President by a small aerospace company in Southern California to establish a facility in Tucson. During this time he became a member of the Society of Photographic Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE), and developed and taught a short course in optical alignment techniques for many years both under the auspices of SPIE and internationally. In 1989 Mitch was made a Fellow of SPIE, a tribute to his teaching and his stature in the optics industry. One of his proudest moments was when he was asked to participate in the Hubble Telescope repair committee. A more well known collaboration was with a local Tucson businessman to create Revo sunglasses, and he continued to be associated with the Revo name long after the product line had been sold. In 1994 Mitch and the three associates he had hired and worked with for over ten years started a company, Ruda & Associates, Inc. to provide optical design and consulting. Under his guidance the company thrived in the optics community in both the commercial and defense industries, and a second company, Cardinal Optics, Inc., was formed in 2000 in order to build and test the designs that were produced. These two companies merged in 2009, resulting in Ruda-Cardinal, Inc. Mitch was a brilliant scientist and astute businessman, as well as a dear and valued friend of everyone he knew. He was also an accomplished skier and bike rider, and participated in several El Tour races over the years. He trained hard for the longest and most difficult segment, and always finished the course. His sense of humor was without equal, and no one could tell a story better. He provided a spark that will be impossible to replace. Arrangements by EAST LAWN PALMS MORTUARY.