Contributions of John Letey Jr. to the Soil Physics Community.

John Letey Jr. was a Distinguished Professor of Soil Physics at the University of California, Riverside (UCR).  He enjoyed an illustrious career in research, teaching, administration, and service that had a pronounced effect on many in the Soil Physics Community.  His research focused on all aspects of water quantity and quality related to irrigated agriculture that provided both applied and basic information critical to establishing sound water resource management. Topics of research included irrigation, drainage, salinity, pesticide transport, plant-water relations, nitrogen, soil aeration, and polymers. He was also recognized as one of the world authorities on water repellent soils and the utilization of surfactants.  He co-authored more than 300 technical publications with 187 students, staff, visiting scholars, and faculty.  John championed the causes of Soil and Environmental Science as Department Chair, director of the Kearney Foundation of Soil Science, and director of the University of California Center for Water Resources.  He was a fellow in the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA), the American Society of Agronomy, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and was the recipient of the SSSA’s awards for Distinguished Service and the Soil Science Research.  John was a friend and mentor to many individuals across the world, and served the Soil Physics Community with great love and personal integrity.