Daniel Robert Harper, Jr., age 92, retired Raytheon engineer and a longtime Concord resident died Thursday, April 21st at Robbins Brook in Acton. He was the husband of the late Nancy (Allen) Harper who died in 1999. He was born in Reading, PA on March 21, 1924 to the late Daniel Robert Harper and Dorothy Gertrude (Fassnacht) Harper. His father had been educated at Schuylkill Seminary in Reading, was a minister in the United Brethren Evangelical Church and who resigned and enlisted in the US Army Air Service as a pilot during World War I. The family lived in Reading, Hazelton, and Scranton, PA while his father was employed as a reporter by several different newspapers. In 1932, they moved to Staten Island, NY where his father joined the Staten Island Advance as a reporter, and after several promotions, he was named Editor. Robert's name was changed from D. Robert to Robert when the New York City school system refused to allow any student to have an initial before a name. Robert graduated from Port Richmond High School in 1942 and served in the US Army Air Corps as a radio operator mechanic in the 437th Troop Carrier Group. He was stationed in England and France during the invasion of France and Germany, and earned seven battle stars. He attended Haverford College in Pennsylvania where he earned a BS in Physics in 1949. He was employed by National Union Radio Company as a development engineer until 1951, when he began a graduate study program at Cornell University, where he received an MS in Engineering Physics in 1954. In 1957, he married Nancy Allen, and often said that marriage was the best thing that happened in his life. She was a major contributor to his life and taught him and their three children how to understand life and how to manage their lives. Nancy died in 1999, a victim of Parkinson's disease. A Concord resident since 1958, both he and Nancy were active members of the First Parish in Concord. For five years, he served on the Concord Municipal Light Board. For thirty-five years, he was employed by Raytheon Company as an engineer, working on the design and development of linear beam microwave tubes until his retirement as a Principal Engineer in 1991. He designed and developed Backward Wave Oscillators and helix Travelling Wave Tubes which advanced the state of the art for maximum power and frequency. Particular achievements were the use of diamonds and electrode support insulators to maximize the power of helix TWT's, and design approaches to reduce undesirable oscillators in helix TWT's. In his final years at Raytheon, he participated in the development of millimeter wave helix TWT's for satellite communication systems. During his time at the company, he was awarded twelve patents and delivered/published more than twenty-five papers. After retirement, he continued consulting in the design of TWT's. He also spent one year supervising the rebuilding of his residence to repair damage caused by a lightning strike, which was an adventure in construction engineering. Survivors include his daughters, Jean Harper of Uniondale, IN, and Abigail Kingsbury of Acton, MA, his son, Rev. Daniel Robert Harper of San Mateo, CA, and his brother, Lee Harper of Newtown Square, PA. A private burial service was held at the family burial plot in Prospect Hill Cemetery on Nantucket. A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, April 27th at 10 am in the First Parish, 20 Lexington Road, Concord. Concord's Town Flag will fly at half-staff on Wednesday, April 27th in recognition of Mr. Harper's service to his country during World War II. In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to the First Parish in Concord, 20 Lexington Road, Concord, MA 01742, or to Haverford College, 370 Lancaster Avenue, Haverford, PA 19041.