Mr. Joseph Conrad Nirschl died on June 26, 2020 after a brief illness at age 89. Born in 1931 in Deggendorf, Bavaria, Germany he attended schools in Deggendorf and Regensburg, where as a boy he also became a member of the Regensburg Cathedral Boys Choir (“Domspatzen”). With that choir he participated in concert tours in Germany and other countries in Europe. After WWII he continued his education at the Humanistic Gymnasium of Metten, one of the first such schools to reopen in Bavaria in 1946, after it had been closed by the Nazi regime in 1939. He graduated from that school in 1950 and started his engineering studies later at the Technical University of Munich. He completed his studies in 1957 with the Diploma Engineer degree, having performed the requisite diploma work at the Institute for Broadcasting and Television at Nuremberg. He then joined a company developing and manufacturing nuclear instrumentation for medical and industrial use in the city of Erlangen.
In 1959 he accepted an offer to work at the then U.S. Army Signal Research & Development Laboratory at Fort Monmouth, N.J. There he joined the group involved in the development and the fielding of radiological instrumentation for ground and airborne nuclear defense. He authored various technical papers and reports on developments in this field, obtained several U.S. patents and attained the position of a supervisory engineer/team leader. He completed 36 working years at Ft. Monmouth with his retirement in 1995.
In 1963 he married Martha Konrath of Livingston, NJ and they resided in West Long Branch with their three children. Mr. Nirschl was a member of St. Jerome parish since 1962 and participated for many years in support activities for the parish. He enjoyed family life, hosting or visiting friends and relatives, occasional travel in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, or Europe as well as playing piano, photography, and ocean fishing. The deceased is survived by his beloved wife Martha of 57 years; his son Joseph Thomas of Richmond, VA; Dr. Frederick William and his wife Tracy of Ocean Township; and his daughter Dr. Monica (Nirschl) Bream and her husband Dr. Jay of Maryland; as well as by four cherished grandchildren: Reed, Mollie, Anna and Alec. Also surviving is his brother Fritz in Deggendorf, Germany as well as nieces, nephews, and cousins in Germany.
A private funeral service for immediate family is scheduled at St. Jerome Church in West Long Branch, N.J. with subsequent private interment at Woodbine Cemetery, Oceanport, NJ. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Jerome’s School or Church in West Long Branch, N.J.