Richard J. Farrelly Sr. | Engineer, 75

Richard J. Farrelly Sr., 75, of Berwyn, a retired engineer, died of heart failure Saturday at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center in Philadelphia.

Among the projects Mr. Farrelly helped develop during his 32-year career with General Electric in Philadelphia were NASA's Apollo reentry system and the MX missile. He often traveled to Europe and the Middle East on assignments. In 1986, he retired from GE as a research and engineering general manager. He then became vice president of Base Ten Systems, a software developer in Princeton, until 2000.

A native of the Bronx, N.Y., Mr. Farrelly earned a bachelor's degree in engineering from Manhattan College. He earned a master's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania while at GE. He later taught physics to LaSalle University graduate students.

Since 1956, he had been married to Patricia Dillon Farrelly. Her parents, like his, were Irish immigrants. He and his wife often traveled to Ireland to visit relatives, and they shared their love of Irish culture with their children. He enjoyed home improvement projects, the Jersey Shore, mysteries and historical fiction.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by daughters Kathleen, Marianne Boyle, Elizabeth Sur, and Regina Yoegel; sons James and Richard; a brother; and 14 grandchildren.

A Funeral Mass will be said at 6:30 p.m. today at St. Katharine of Siena, Lancaster and Aberdeen Avenues, Wayne. Friends may call at 5 p.m.