Joseph Leslie Merchant, a native of St. Ignace, and member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, died December 10, 2003. He was 58 and living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at the time of his death.

Mr. Merchant had a rich and diverse professional life, including service to his country with the Department of Defense, National Security Agency (NSA), and as an officer in the U.S. Army, Military Intelligence Branch, where he attained the rank of captain.

He and his wife, Roberta Holliday Merchant, had two children: a daughter, Jean Merchant Chaplin, and a son, Donald Edward Merchant.

Mr. Merchant studied abroad in Germany and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kalamazoo College. After joining NSA, he earned a Master’s of Science degree in Numerical Science from The John Hopkins University.

At NSA, Mr. Merchant attained professional certification as a Cryptologic Mathematician, a Computer Systems Analyst, an Operations Research Analyst, and a Cryptanalyst. He was honored with a Science Fellowship to the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he was assigned to the Office of Energy-Related Inventions.

Mr. Merchant retired from NSA in 1996 but then chose to give back from his training and experience. He first served as a mathematics instructor at the Computer Learning Center in Laurel, Maryland, and, in 2003, became a continuing education instructor in Computer Security and Information Systems for The Learning Tree International.

Mr. Merchant also enjoyed a number of hobbies, including gunsmithing, competitive shooting, swimming, snorkeling, sailing, and reading. A dedicated student of the martial arts, he earned a 2nd degree black belt in Aikido.

He is survived by his wife and two children, his mother, Dorothy Macdonald Merchant, his son-in-law, Daniel Lee Chaplin, and his daughter-in-law, Erin Noreen Merchant. His first grandchild, a girl, will be born this July to Jean and Daniel Chaplin.

He was preceded in death by his father, Joseph E. Merchant, and brother, Donald Joseph Merchant.