John Acevedo '67, a retired engineer with a long history of volunteering for the Institute, suffered a medical emergency during an Alumni Leadership Conference session on Sept. 20. Although MIT Police and emergency medical teams responded quickly and he was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital, Acevedo did not survive.
Born in Puerto Rico, Acevedo studied physics at MIT and worked for Northrop Grumman for 38 years until his retirement in 2006. He had also worked independently as an information technology consultant since 1985. He traveled frequently from his home in the Baltimore area to Puerto Rico and recently attended his high school reunion there. Funeral arrangements are under way for his burial on his native island.
“John was a true alumni leader, always bubbling with new ideas and ways to reach out to our classmates,” said Bob Ferrara ’67, president of their class. Acevedo was an organizer of the Tech Challenge Games, a feature of Tech Reunions, and for 23 years he helped run the games, often alongside his son, Patrick. He was vice president of the Class of 1967 and served as the class agent for the William Barton Rogers Society. He served as an educational counselor for many years.
“John Acevedo was utterly devoted to our class and to MIT. He will be greatly missed," said John Ross, Class of 1967 vice president.
Acevedo earned a master's in physics in 1974 at the University of Maryland at College Park. He was a member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and served as webmaster of its Baltimore chapter.
