Walter Weldon Bond Jr
June 18, 1942 ~ May 24, 2016
Born in:
El Paso, TX
Resided in:
Lawrenceville, GA
Obituary for Walter Bond
Bond, Walter W.
In the early morning hours of Tuesday, May 24, 2016, Walter Weldon Bond, Jr. passed away peacefully after a short but serious illness. He was 73 years old.
Walter (Walt) was born on June 18, 1942 in El Paso, Texas. He was the only child of Walter W. Bond, Sr. and Opal Mae Elliott Bond. The family lived in several Texas communities while his father served in the Army during World War II. Eventually the family settled in Lubbock, Texas where Walt graduated from Monterrey High School in 1960 and Texas Technological College (now Texas Tech University) with a BS in Bacteriology in 1964. He attended graduate school at Northwestern College of Louisiana in Natchitoches, Louisiana and received his MS in Microbiology in 1967.
Walt had an illustrious 31-year career as an indoor environmental microbiologist. He went to work for the Centers for Disease Control in 1968 where he was assigned to the Phoenix Field Station and started his career working in the Planetary Spacecraft Sterilization program in partnership with NASA. While in Phoenix, he did notable research on spore-forming bacteria. During this time he discovered a highly thermo-resistant bacterial spore which was officially named Bacillus xerothermodurans. He transitioned into what would become his life-long passion of environmental infection control. The scope of his work included hepatitis B virus microbiology, sterilization and disinfection of medical instruments and healthcare facility surfaces, and healthcare worker safety. His work in this latter subject laid out the scientific principles involved in healthcare occupational infection, which were incorporated into the OSHA bloodborne pathogens standard released in 1991. Along with his colleague Ramon Moncada, MD, he published some of the first research on the reprocessing of flexible fiberoptic endoscopes. CDC closed the Phoenix Field Station in 1983 and moved the staff to CDC here in Atlanta. He joined the Hospital Infections Program (now the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion) where he did applied research to prevent infections in patients undergoing hemodialysis. Throughout his CDC career, he made major contributions to many CDC infection prevention guidelines, most notably the 1985 "Guideline for Handwashing and Hospital Environmental Control" and the 1993 and 2003 editions of the "Guidelines for Infection Control in Dental Health-Care Settings." He retired as a Senior Research Microbiologist/Deputy Branch Chief of the Program’s laboratories in January 1998. He spent several years thereafter as an independent consultant in healthcare environmental microbiology doing business as RCSA, Inc.
Walt lived in Lawrenceville, Georgia for many years. He was a motorcycle enthusiast and especially enjoyed units with a side car attached. He loved fishing, reading, cooking, sharing good times with friends, and listening to bluegrass music. He was devoted to all of his pets and loved animals in general. He took great pride in the Obedience training/competitions of his German Shepherd (Dixie I) and Belgian Tervuren (Dixie II).
Walt is survived by his present partner and significant other Lynne Sehulster, his previous partner and significant other Karen McCaustland, and cousins Rodney Bond of Beggs, Oklahoma and Michelle Pfeil of Pleasanton, Texas.
A Celebration of Life service will be held at the Wages & Sons Funeral Home and Crematorium, 1031 Lawrenceville Highway, Lawrenceville, Georgia 30046 on Saturday, June 18, 2016, at 4:00 PM. The family will be receiving family and friends before the service from 2:00 PM until 4:00 PM at the funeral home.
Donations in Walt’s memory can be directed to groups who provide service dogs to disabled military veterans (e.g. PatriotPaws www.patriotpaws.org/donate.html or America’s Vet Dogs www.vetdogs.org ) or to programs that rescue military service dogs and police dogs and put them up for adoption (Save-A-Vet www.save-a-vet.org/d7/donate)
Condolences may be sent to www.wagesandsons.com Wages & Sons Funeral Home - 1031 Lawrenceville Hwy., Lawrenceville, GA 30046 - 770-277-4550
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Sad salutations Walter. So pleased to read that your life was rich and rewarding . I remember you. Minyon “Mickie” Bond
RIP WALTER
Remembering you with a smile on my face-thought of you often over the years. Condolences to those that loved you.
I worked for Walt for several years at CDC. He always wore his leather vest and cowboy boots , so being born and raised in Atlanta, Walt represented Texas in my eyes. He was a great cook and story teller. He loved animals like I do. If his hair and beard had been white, he would have made a great Santa ,he had a jolly laugh. Karen and Lynne my thoughts and prayers are with you at this sad time. He was truly one of a kind. I will cherish the memories.
Walt was my “go to guy” for any question I needed help answering on environmental micro during my early years at CDC (Lynne, you stepped in to fill that roll for me later, thank you!). Always helpful, and always fun. Cowboy boots, leather vest, motorcycle, and Texas drawl; ever ready to attend Marty’s “liver rounds”. My heartfelt condolences to those he loved.
Walt was like my brother, we loved to spur each other on with great arguments and theories and he tested me so much and I learned so much. Chemistry? I don’t know but from the moment we met, that was it, friends, more than friends for ever. I mean who else would spend $80 on a Harley Barbie as retirement gift. A mentor extraordinaire but even a better friend and I love you and miss you and I never dunk it, I cook it. And my heart goes to Lynne and Karen and I love you both
I will miss you so very much my dear friend!
So sorry to hear of my friend and colleague passing. He was a professional of integrity and character and also knew how to enjoy life. I will miss him.
Sorry to see you go. You gave me one of the greatest joys of my life–sidecars. I will surely miss you and I owe you a great debt.
A great friend who unselfishly gave of himself to others his great knowledge and skills in life – wish I had listened more. Way back then, Walt’s Texan approach and humor to infection control issues kept us at FDA on our toes and then some. May the Peace of the World be with you Walt. We miss you – and I promise I will not approve any more glass bead sterilizers.
So very sad to learn today of Walt’s passing; and heartfelt prayers and wishes to Lynne and to Karen…
Damn we had a lot of good times, and did some serious work together too on blood borne pathogens and medical device sterilization. He was “Uncle Walt” and fishin’ buddy to my son Reed — Walt always called it “going out to drown worms.” Reed still has the passion Walt gave him for growing Texas peppers, of all kinds. Will miss you forever, Buddy!
Walt, we never got a chance to ride together enuff; I truly enjoyed my quick overnite stays with you while riding thru;
U introduced me to my 1st Side Car in Phoenix; Lynne, I am so sad for your loss;
I enjoyed the long phone conversations, warm and funny, in recent years, always easily picking up where we left off, although the miles kept us from actually seeing one another. Walt’s linguini with clam sauce “recipe”, which I wrote down as he just pulled it out of that brain of his, after I gladly turned over my kitchen, is one of my favorites. Trips to Tijuana and a long ago ride in his side car are cherished memories. Oh, and now that “Roots” has been redone, I can’t help but remember Ramon and I watching the original in Walter’s living room in Phoenix. He was one of a kind, and Ramon and I will miss him. Warm hugs to Lynne and Karen.
Walt,, You were a great friend and colleague. Really made me feel welcome when I joined the Branch back in 1988. Will miss your wisdom and humor. We will all miss you. Lynne and Karen you are in my thoughts and prayers..
How can Walt be gone? I wasn’t done! I still want to phone him and hear his latest joke, discuss the state of infection control, health care, and politics. I want to visit him again and watch him sputter over the squirrels in his bird feeders, I want another white-knuckle ride in his side car and to hear him chuckle. I want to get another Yorkie puppy and watch him drop to the floor and play with it. I want him to visit my home with its many glass doors and say in his West Texas drawl, “My God, Janie, how can you secure a place like that?” But, as the song says, we don’t always get what we want. Sometimes we get what we need. He was the CDC colleague I needed when I arrived at FDA. He was a beacon of science when I thought I might drown in a sea of nonsensical regulations. I frequently quoted him, referred to his publications and to his sage advice. He was always there when I needed him. His spirit and his legacy will live forever in the hearts of those who knew him. How could one possibly forget?
I was saddened to hear of the passing of Walter Bond. Walt was a special person in my mind and had a unique and broad-based background in microbiology associated with hospital-acquired and other infections. Walt was a treasure trove of information, a talented scientific writer and great speaker involving the sources and transmission routes of nosocomial pathogens. I will miss my friend and CDC/HIP-colleague very much. Rest in peace my good and old friend and God’s blessings to Lynne and Karen as they endure this personal loss.
A very very dear friend to my dad Sal (also a Microbiologist) and my wonderful, very missed mom, Martha…..I’m now 46, and my one and only ride on a motorcycle side-car was probably 40 years ago, with Mr. Walt at the wheel……great memories from a very respected man that always made me, my brother, my dad, and my mom laugh. He will be missed for sure.
My deepest condolences to Lynn, Karen and all the CDC family.
I studied my first nosocomial infections micro with the late Don Mackel and George Mallison. Then came the “endoscope diaries” and my new BBF Walter Bond. He was a mentor, advisor, friend and trusted researcher in the issues that still plague the medical community today in reprocessing flexible endoscopes. Walt knew what was right for the patient and never wavered under manufacturers’ pressure.
Walter, I hope to find you some day with that “melon stand” and your best friends Jack Daniels and George Dickel ready to be shared with all you grateful guests and colleagues. RIP Walt.
Just heard the news today from Lynne…Although I did not spend much time with Walt, the few meetings/conferences I participated in where he shared his pragmatic knowledge of infection control still resonate with me today..20 years later…
had the best b-day card stamped and waiting to be mailed. it had pictures of two owls on the front and the text read i knew you would like a card with two nice hooters on it. i’ll always remember you visited me when i was pregnant with megyn and took the only picture of me that way. rest in peace love eileen
I recruited Walter for our planetary, quarantine, sterilization program in Phoenix in 1968. From that point on we became partners in
in a number 0f research projects including the so called “super spore” and endoscope cleaning projects. We were partners in
research and Walt was good friends with me and my wife Mary Clare. He was a significant asset in our dealings with the infection
control community, the FDA and EPA. We co-authored the section on disinfection and sterilization in “S. Block’s book” Sterilization
of Medical Equipment. We will miss him and he will always be in our thoughts and prayers.
Walter was a student in some of the bacteriology classes I taught at Texas Technological College in Lubbock. He was an outstanding student and was encouraged to continue into graduate studies. While at TTC, he was president of a newly created Student Microbiology Club, Texas Technological College Chapter of the Texas Branch, American Society for Microbiology.
As a person, he was a special student, colleague, scientist, and long time friend. We are honored to have known and respected his life among us..
I was shocked and sadden to hear of Walt’s passing. I met Walt when I worked at FDA. He was one of my go-to people when I had questions about the reprocessing of medical devices. He always had time to answer all my questions. I still remember the lively discussions we had. I will miss him.
Walt was a very good man and a very good friend. Always perfectly honest and straightforward there was never anything artificial about this man. We could talk for hours about dogs, Texas, motorcycles, and the general state of the world – and enjoy every minute. I consider it a great privilege to have been his friend.
I was saddened to hear of the sudden passing of Walter. He was a dear friend of my parents Martin and Mary Clare Favero. I have fond memories of riding in Walters motorcycle side-car over 40 years ago, as he surprised me and picked me up from my candystriper job at the hospital at my parents request. I remember him as a very kind man to both me and my family, he will be missed.
My deepest sympathy to Lynne and the family. My thoughts and prayers are with you, and may the comfort of God help you through this difficult time. So sorry to hear about your loss, Lynne.
Sympathy to my cousin Lynne and wishing her comfort in memories of Walter.
I’m saddened to hear of Walt’s passing. I worked with him many years ago in The Hospital Infections Program where I begin my career and learned a lot from typing ALL of those manuscripts. Those were the good old days! It was a privilege to work with such a great group of talented people. He’ll be missed and I offer my thoughts, prayers and well-wishes during this time.
Walt, I only met you a few times but each was wonderfully informative and enjoyable – a mixture of science, politics, public health and motorcycles. I appreciated you finding me worthy of adopting one of your sidecar rigs. I wish you and your family peace and the knowledge you touched & helped many lives.
I will always miss my good friend of 40 years, we worked together at CDC and also played together for many years after that. What a great guy and a great friend,
Ramon E. Moncada MD FIDSA
I first met Walt at the what was probably the 2nd Legionnaire’s Disease Conference in ATL I was a graduate student coming by myself to my first big CDC meeting. It was a social hour but I did not know anyone and was sort of star-struck by being a room full of CDC scientists (most in suits). Walt was sitting at a table by himself in a sportshirt. I was wearing a Texas belt buckle that caught his attention and he invited me to come join him. We had a great time swapping stories about Texas, lab work and the bugs. I remember him telling me that the best disinfectant that money could buy for hepatitis B was bleach. Fast forward about 11 years and I come to CDC and am working with HIP and run into Walt. The lights went on and we picked up where we left off. Walt was an excellent scientist, a straight-shooter who told things the way he saw them – “just as true as the blue Texas skies.”
Lynne,
As an infection preventionist for many years, I was familiar with Walter Bond- studied his writings and learned…I believe his work remains a cornerstone for the practice of infection control and prevention during its early years. Because of his work our specialty is stronger…but what a guy!!! From the shared stories I see love and warmth here and passion with honesty and a bit saltiness to balance out the mix. I sure would have loved to meet him. I know you and many others will miss him dearly- but he will not be forgotten!
What can I say Cuz… I will dearly miss our long conversations, sipping George Dickel, and talking about family. As much as you were a brilliant scientist, you were an even more beloved friend!! Rest in peace Walt! I love ya Cuz!!
Thank you all, for sharing your memories. Your thoughts, prayers and expressions of sympathy have helped ease this past month’s difficult moments. Farewell, dear Walter, you have enriched my life more than anyone. You will not be forgotten. Rest in Peace. Love Karen
As I read the memories posted here by family, friends, and colleagues, it warms my heart to know how much Walter meant to you, how loved he was. Many thanks to you all for your condolences and fond memories. Walter was an amazing man of many talents, creative and resourceful, passionate and loyal, a disciplined scientist. He opened my world in so many ways to new things and experiences, but the most important was love. Walter, you will be with me now and for all time. I still feel your spirit. I love you. Lynne