Mount Diablo Surveyors Historical Society
In Memorial
Alvin “Skip” Powell
Christensen
California Licensed Land Surveyor L 3936
Born: 1939, Died June 2, 2012
With great sadness, I regret to inform the
land surveying community of the passing of my father Alvin “Skip” Christensen,
PLS 3936. Skip lost his battle with cancer this morning [06-02-2012], he was 73
years young. Skip is survived by his wife Brett, son Warren, daughter Jenifer,
grandson Scott, granddaughter Melissa, grandson Brock, granddaughter Kendall
and myself[Brian].
Skip was born and raised in Rio Vista, CA. He played basketball and
football at Rio Vista High School and later attended UC Davis and played
football for the Aggies. Skip enjoyed sailing in the San Francisco Bay and
later, the coastal waters of the Pacific out of Dana Point, CA. I have many
fond memories of sailing with my dad.
Skip started his surveying career at the Port of Oakland in 1960. He worked for
the Port for 4 years. He then took a position at Murray-McCormick in Oakland.
Murray-McCormick eventually became Greiner, which eventually became URS
Corporation. Skip became licensed in 1971. Skip served as a Vice President for
many of his 48 years with URS. He spent 16 years in Santa Ana, CA as Greiner’s
Southern Region Survey Operations Manager. He found his way back to the Bay
Area to lead URS’ Northern Region Survey Group in 1998.
Skip has worked on numerous high-profile transportation projects throughout
California, most notably Bay Area Rapid Transit. Last year, Skip began work on
the Fresno to Bakersfield phase of the California High-Speed Rail Right of Way
Engineering project. He enjoyed the challenge of large projects. He has
influenced and mentored many throughout his career. Over the years, I have been
told by many what a professional he was and how he has influenced their
careers. His footprint will live on in many of the surveyors he has worked with
throughout his career, including mine.
A memorial for Skip will be held in Isleton, CA on the afternoon of July 28th, 2012.
Brian Christensen, PLS, CA, NV
06-02-2012
This memorial was written by Brian Christensen and first
published on 06/02/2012 on the California Land Surveyors Forums website, © 2012
- All rights reserved.
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