Mr. Gislason was born in Reykjavik, Iceland, and was the father of Thorsteinn (Ragnheidur), Salem, NH, and Olafur (Katherine), Jamestown, RI; stepfather of Geoffrey Lane (Julie), Dallas, Texas, Courtney Lane Lautieri (Dominic), Bristol, and Cara Lane (Andrew Tenant Reed, Jr.), Oak Bluffs, Mass. He is also survived by an older sister, Gudrun Gisladottir, who resides in Iceland, and was predeceased by a brother, Haraldur Gislason.
Mr. Gislason received a BS degree in engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an MS degree from Harvard University. He was an engineer at Sporlan Valve Company in St. Louis, MO, where several of his designs were patented. Later, he became president of Coldwater Seafood Corporation in Rowayton, Conn., a position he held for more than 22 years. He was a member of the American Society of Refrigerating Engineers, a Registered Professional Engineer in Massachusetts, and was elected a lifetime member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
Mr. Gislason leaves grandchildren Frida Bartlett, Lara Vukson (Joseph), Petur Gislason (Nicole), Erika Gislason, Stefan Gislason, Elias Lane, Hunter Lane (Madison), Griffin, Killian, Grayson, Ruby, and Ryker Lautieri, Milla Clarke, Townsend Clarke, Theodore Reed, and Maybury Reed; also great-grandchildren Evan Bartlett, Henry Vukson, Zackery Vukson, and Alona Lane.
Thorsteinn was an inveterate tinkerer, never replacing anything that could be repaired. He enjoyed reading, classical music and the Sunday evening jazz hour. Those people fortunate enough to have known him need no explanation of what a giant of a man he was. For those who didn’t, no explanation would be sufficient.