Obituaries

Richard T. 'Dick' OlsonAdvertising Salesman

Richard T. "Dick" Olson, 74, a retired newspaper advertising salesman, died March 20 of lung cancer at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda. He was a Chevy Chase resident.

Mr. Olson was born in Vineland, N.J., and served in the Marine Corps in 1950-51. After he was discharged, he moved to the Washington area and became an advertising salesman for the Washington Star. When the newspaper folded in 1981, he worked in the same capacity for the Journal Newspapers. He retired in 1998.

He was a fundraiser with the Variety Club during his tenure at both newspapers. A member of Manor Country Club in Rockville, he enjoyed golf, bridge and fishing.

Survivors include his wife of 54 years, Geraldine "Geri" Olson of Chevy Chase; a son, Eric Olson of Downingtown, Pa.; two sisters, Christine Sarna of Woodbridge and Barbara Pippin of Laurel; and a grandson.

-- Joe Holley

Alice K. SachaklianNSA Crypto-Linguist

Alice K. Sachaklian, 87, a retired crypto-linguist at the National Security Agency, died March 13 at the Johnson Center at Falcons Landing, a military retirement community in Potomac Falls. She was a longtime McLean resident before moving to Potomac Falls in 1996.

Mrs. Sachaklian was born Alice Arusyag Keosaian in the Bronx, N.Y., to Armenian immigrants. She received an undergraduate degree in German and art at Hunter College in 1940 and did graduate work in German at Columbia University.

She began a career in government service in 1942 at the Office of Censorship in New York. In 1945, she traveled in a convoy of 50 ships across the Atlantic, the final convoy of World War II, and experienced V.E. Day in Paris on May 8 of that year.

She moved to the Washington area in 1947 and began her career as a crypto-linguist and crypto-analyst at the NSA, holding positions in postwar Germany and in Washington. She achieved the rank of GS-15 Division Chief. At her retirement in 1978, she received the Department of Defense Meritorious Civilian Service Award, the highest honor for a civilian. She was a life member of the Phoenix Society, an organization of retired NSA professionals.