Cyrus Pershing Henry Jr.

Cyrus Pershing Henry, Jr. of Malvern, Pennsylvania passed away on July 24, 2022 at the age of 82. While his long battle with Parkinson’s Disease made his final years difficult, Cyrus maintained his love of family, travel, nature, and photography throughout his life.

Cyrus was born on April 14, 1940 in Ithaca, New York and grew up in Big Run, Pennsylvania. From a very young age, he developed a deep love of science, often conducting experiments – with mixed results – in his family’s shed. His embrace of science only grew stronger as he attended the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh, followed by graduate school at Cornell University and the University of Wisconsin, earning a PhD in Chemistry. Cyrus spent the next four decades of his career living in Delaware and working for DuPont and Octel America, where he invented several jet fuel additives that have greatly improved the safety of air transport worldwide. In recognition of his work, Cyrus was awarded the Lowrie B. Sargent Jr. medal and the Award of Merit by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), and a Lifetime Achievement Award by the  International Association for Stability, Handling and Use of Liquid Fuels (IASH).

In his spare time, Cyrus was an accomplished photographer of nature and wildlife, conducting photography expeditions to the Galapagos Islands, Alaska, Churchill, Canada, and many of America’s beautiful national parks. He had the opportunity to visit dozens of countries, sharing many of these experiences with his wife and soulmate, Joan. An advocate of physical fitness, he was proud to have completed a number of triathlons.

Cyrus is survived by wife Joan; his children Aden, Julie (Dave), and Nathan (Rachel); step-children, Hector (Kim), Daniel (Muna), and Jeanine; siblings Patricia, Edith, Robert, Donald, Sue, and brother-in-law Koge; grand-children Erin, Desmond, Donovan, Jacob, Skyler, Shawn, Mick, David, Madison, and Harrison, as well as numerous nieces, nephews, great-grandchildren, cousins, and friends. Cyrus was preceded in death by his father C Pershing Henry, Sr., his mother Edith Henry, his sister, Connie, his sister-in-law Vicki, and his step-son Carlos, and daugher-in-law Nancy. 

A visitation and memorial service for Cyrus is scheduled for Saturday, August 6 at 10am at Logan Funeral Home at 698 East

 Lincoln Highway in Exton, PA. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.