John William Lotzgesell

John William Lotzgesell, 69, suffered a heart attack while riding his bike and passed away on April 4, 2024. John had relocated from his lifetime home in the Pacific Northwest to Alexandria, Virginia, and had spent the last two years to be closer to his daughters and grandchildren, becoming fully immersed in his family and his active social life. John was born in Sequim, Washington on December 9, 1954 to Paul Dick and Margaret Ann (Eberle) Lotzgesell who predeceased him. He and his four siblings were raised on their pioneer family’s dairy farm on the Olympic Peninsula, where he graduated in 1973 from Sequim High School. He attended Washington State University and joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity where he met many of his longest known friends. After his time at WSU, John traveled and worked in Jackson Hole, Wyoming with lifetime friends. In the early 1980’s, John moved back to the Pacific Northwest to attend Seattle University, receiving a degree in Accounting. At Seattle University John met his wife and the mother of his three daughters, Marie Firth. They married in Seattle and moved to Monroe, Washington to raise their three children, Monica, Janelle, and Katie. John would spend his summers on Kodiak Island in Alaska running a salmon cannery and calling to tell his girls about watching the Kodiak grizzly bears at the dump, the haunted bunkhouses, and other epic tales of his remote outpost. John and Marie established their beach home on Camano Island, where legendary celebrations, boat rides, crab feasts, and eventually the girls’ suitor-scolding would unfold. He left his girls during the summer with their own entertainment, the ski boat “Lotzagals”, where tubing, water skiing and beach exploring were had in richness. While back at home in the lower 48, John coached the girls’ basketball teams, volunteered in his community, and played an active role at his parish of Holy Innocents in Duvall, WA. John’s career in the Alaska seafood industry spanned decades, where his large presence was only eclipsed by his even larger personality. He took under his wing countless young people willing to work hard to make a dime in just a summer’s time, including siblings, nieces, and eventually his own daughters. Boisterous, charismatic, engaged, and passionate, John shared every bit of himself in everything he did. John never met a stranger. He had a unique ability to weave together a story that could link countless individuals that would otherwise be unconnected, and give the story about each one to boot. John was larger than life – there are no amount of words that could capture John’s one of a kind spirit. Such a striking impact of a person is not readily lost in this world. John is survived by his three daughters and their partners in life Monica Rice (Michael Rice), Janelle Lotzgesell (C. Ryan Maxwell), and Katherine “Katie” Schmidt (Karl Schmidt) and his three grandchildren—Keegan Rice, 9; Calvin Schmidt, 3, and; Luke Schmidt, 1. His moniker of “Papa Lotz” was donned pre-grandchildren by the countless fourth-daughters that he welcomed into the fold, whether through sports, academia, or other life connections. To observe John’s life that spanned the continent, two celebrations of life will be held in his honor: one on the East Coast and one in the Pacific Northwest. The East Coast celebration will be held Friday, April 19, 2024 at 5:30pm at Vola’s Dockside, 101 N. Union Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314. The Pacific Northwest celebration will be held Saturday, May 11, 2024 at 3pm at the Eberle Farm, 2488 Towne Road, Sequim, WA 98382. There will be a private interment ceremony at Dungeness Cemetery.