Obituaries

Mr. Liss and his brother opened Beacon Television Rental on 7th Street NW in 1956, offering the new technology to individuals, apartment houses and hospitals. The store burned during the 1968 riots, and Mr. Liss moved temporarily to Silver Spring.

In 1971, he obtained a real estate license and became sales manager at the Foxhall Apartments in Washington. He also led sales at a number of well-known local developments, including the Rotonda condominium complex in McLean, Montebello condominium high-rise in Alexandria and Leisure World in Silver Spring. He retired in 1990.

He was born in New Bedford, Mass., and played basketball and soccer in high school. He moved to Washington in 1936 and sold blankets and bedspreads door-to-door. By 1938, he managed a radio store on Seventh Street NW. In 1940, he had a clothing store on the same street.

During World War II, he worked as a riveter in a B-29 aircraft plant in the Washington area.

He was a member and past board member of the Indian Spring Country Club, where he enjoyed playing tennis and writing about the game for the club newsletter. He was a member of the Jewish Community Center.

Survivors include his wife of 68 years, Suetelle Phillips Liss of Rockville; two children, Meryl Liss Goodman of Rockville and Fulton Liss of Chevy Chase; four brothers, Abe Liss of Chevy Chase, Burton Liss of Arlington, George Liss of Boca Raton, Fla., and Phillip Liss of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; a sister, Gertrude Liss of Boca Raton; and four grandchildren.

-- Patricia Sullivan

Kay Fife SterrettCold Regions Scientist

Kay Fife Sterrett, 76, a retired engineer who headed the research division of the U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in New Hampshire, died Dec. 30 at Heritage House, a skilled nursing facility in Leesburg. He had complications from brain surgery to treat a head injury.

Mr. Sterrett, a former Bethesda resident, was born in McKeesport, Pa., and grew up in Monessen, Pa. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh in 1953 and received a doctorate in physical chemistry from the same university in 1957. He also received a master's degree in electrical engineering from Dartmouth College in 1985.

He began his government career in 1957 with the National Bureau of Standards. In 1961, he accepted a position managing research projects with Northrop in Los Angeles.