Joel Harold Lieb was born in 1926 in New York. He and his younger brother were both born and raised in New York City. His mother came to the U.S. from Russia as a young girl and, although his dad was born in Connecticut, his father’s family was from Austria. He attended the City College of New York, School of Technology where he obtained a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering degree in 1947. After college Lieb moved to Twentynine Palms, California with his family. Lieb began working at Rocketdyne in 1956. He worked on the Apollo rocket and was the materials manager for the Space Shuttle main engine. He worked there for 40 years until his retirement in 1989. His job title toward the end of career was Manager, Advanced Materials and Technology in the Engineering and Test Unit. Lieb passed away in 2012.