A master pattern maker, John Mench came to Los Alamos during the Manhattan Project in October 1943.

John’s love of theatre began while he was in high school. Upon coming to Los Alamos, he remembers "sitting in Fuller Lodge, reading plays with J. Robert Oppenheimer."

John has been involved with the Los Alamos Little Theatre since its inception. He has directed 127 Little Theatre productions, having given many local thespians their first roles on stage. He also directed 21 musicals, most of them for Los Alamos Light Opera. He particularly enjoyed teaching drama classes to children. His skills as a woodworker were much in demand when it came to building sets.

A member of the Masonic Lodge for half a century, John is presently helping survivors of the Cerro Grande Fire.

Additional biographical material can be found in the Los Alamos Monitor of September 10, 2000.

Written by Karen Nilsson Brandt, copyright ©