Remembering the Legendary, Al Thumann

Albert Thumann, born March 12, 1942 passed away December 10 after a courageous battle with Brain Cancer (GBM). He is survived by his wife Adriana Thumann, his son Brian Thumann, daughter-in-law Patty Thumann and his grandson Jake Thumann as well as his sister Shirley Honingman.  Al was born in New York and throughout his spirited life traveled the globe making friends wherever he went.

Al founded The Association of Energy Engineers (AEE), a nonprofit, professional membership society in 1977 and served as its Executive Director for 40 years.  Under his leadership, AEE grew from a concept to an industry leading association of over 18,000 professionals in more than 100 countries.  There were no corporate backers, no government grants, and no venture capitalists, just Al, his idea and his family. Al is a noted author with over 26 professional reference books in print. Al taught energy management classes to thousands of students and is widely known as the “father of energy efficiency.”

Al’s energy and spirit inspired people to follow the energy engineering career path.  He helped change the lives of individuals, the success of corporations and even the fate of emerging nations striving for energy efficiency and sustainable solutions.