Grant Beske, age 85, of Skillman, New Jersey, passed away peacefully on April 30, 2025, surrounded by his loving family. Born February 28, 1940, in Mankato, Minnesota, to Grace and Woodrow, Grant spent his childhood in the small community of Minnesota Lake.
Grant pursued his academic dreams at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, earning his undergraduate degree in 1962 and his Doctor of Science in 1965. While completing his dissertation, he married his childhood sweetheart, Carol Leininger. Shortly after defending his dissertation, Grant and Carol welcomed their first child, Kirsten. Following a move to Wilmington, Delaware, for his career at DuPont, they were delighted by the arrival of unexpected twins, Galen and Gavin. In the delivery room he famously quipped, “Now I’m going to have to buy a house,” a line that became family lore. Their youngest, Andrea, completed the family and brought even more joy and laughter to their home.
At DuPont, Grant’s early years in research yielded several patents bearing his name. He later transitioned into product development management, traveling extensively across Asia, Europe, and the U.S. West Coast to oversee projects that helped shape today’s electronics industry.
Grant and Carol enjoyed golf at Springdale in Princeton and at their vacation home in Palm Desert, California. For many years he was fond of playing in local tennis leagues and Friday-night mixed doubles alongside Carol. A lifelong learner, he maintained a vast personal library spanning science, history, religion, and science fiction — and delighted in reading J.R.R. Tolkien’s works aloud to his children.
Grant’s greatest pride was his family: his wife Carol; his four children, Kirsten (Kirt), Galen (Mitos), Gavin (Lise), and Andrea (Paul); and 11 grandchildren, who were the light of his life. Annual family gatherings — whether in Europe, Canada, or across the United States — were eagerly anticipated, and vacations ranging from backpacking in Alaska to rafting the Grand Canyon, hiking Peru’s Inca Trail, safari adventures in Kenya, walking China’s Great Wall, and retracing the footsteps of Jesus in Israel formed a lifetime of shared memories. Over a lifetime of exploration, Grant and Carol visited 29 countries.
A devoted Sufi, Grant’s deep spiritual curiosity led him to study multiple faith traditions with compassion and openness. His gentle wisdom, boundless generosity, and warm sense of humor touched all who knew him.
He is survived by Carol, his beloved wife of 62 years; his four children and their spouses; and his 11 grandchildren, as well as his two brothers, Kurt (Lisa) and Dwight (Valya).
A celebration of Grant’s life will be held on a later date. He always was looking to explore, to learn, and to love without reservation. He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by all who were fortunate to have shared in his remarkable journey.
