I would like to express my condolences to the family of Joe West. I only just learned through colleagues of Joe’s passing. Joe was a large influence on my undergraduate research experience, and was really my entrance to it. I first trained with him in his electronics lab and machine shop for several years and he made this incredibly exciting and adventurous. He once demonstrated the discharge of a capacitor with a setup that would fling a racquetball all around the room. I soon picked up other jobs for him and eventually began researching devices and sensors for cancer detection with endless creative input from Joe. Joe was such a role model because he chose his words carefully and whenever he spoke, it was to relay an extremely creative thought and solution to a problem that no one else in the room could have conjured. He was a fantastic listener and his passion for creative hobbies and physics showed in everything he did. I’m grateful for the time I had with him! 

Rest in peace,
Josh Javor

All that has been written about Joe West rings true. I share a story from his early life.   Many may not know that in his teens Joe West overcame severe stuttering & shyness.  When he  enlisted in the US Army he told his mom, Sadonia Schwoerer, how much he wanted to make it in the service.  She told him to  focus on the other person, not on his trouble with getting words out. He conquered his disability & used it to become successful in working with people throughout his life   After his step dad died 11 years ago, Joe and his sister Nessie stepped up to help his mom as she underwent many surgeries.  Joe and his wife Laurie brought laughter & teasing, games & jokes into every daily phone conversation. Sadonia was my best friend for 45 years. I watched Joe achieve so much through her loving eyes. The love & respect he received from Laurie added so much to the last 20 years of his life.  God rest his soul.

Joe was one of the best teachers and employers that I ever had. He was the guy that made you want to work. He pushed me to try things that intimidated me and taught me more than anyone else about what was possible with a little respect. He taught me a lot more than I realized at the time. I will miss him.

I had the pleasure of working with Joe for over 30 years, and during that time, he never once said "no" to anything we needed—whether it was for the undergraduate lab, my research projects, or classroom demonstrations. Joe had a remarkable knack for finding and repurposing older components when newer parts were unavailable. His creative, often elegantly simple solutions to complex challenges regularly impressed our students.

I still remember when we were struggling to stabilize a rotating (and vibrating) inverted pendulum for the Mechanical Engineering measurements lab. Joe just smiled and said, “We’ll make it work”—and, of course, he did.

All of us fondly recall his unwavering enthusiasm for his work and his warm, collaborative interactions with faculty, students, and staff alike.

—Raj Singh

Laurie

I am truly sad to hear of Joe West's passing at an early age. Ever since he took over the electronics shop from Cecil Rhods when the latter retired to his farm in Illinoi (I think during our move to Scott Lab from 2003 to 2006), Joe personified excellence and a passion for helping students learn. I just saw my OSU email from Vish and saw the sad news. 

You have our heartfelt condolences. 

Cheena Srinivasan

My wife and I met Joe and Laurie at his moms house when they came down to Aransas Pass to visit her and Vanessa.
He was a faithful and great son who gave Sadonia such joy. They shared a phone call every week for an hour and Joe and Sadonia shared Spanish lessons. Joe took the time to really care and love his mom. That told me all I needed to know about the man. Sadonia was so proud of him and she cared about him deeply. We are saddened that he has passed from our presence into the next part of his journey. May the Lord bless him and keep him always.

I am so sadened by his early death - knowing how much he loved Laurie, the children and grand children. When I saw Laurie and him together  - it was so genuine loving - more is not possible. 
His sisters heart, he called her Sis, would have been broken if she were still alife. Joe and her were more than siblings- they were so much alike! True love for each other, a very dry and smart sense of humor, more introverted , but always very attentive , and a true passion for people and animals who needed support and attention!

Sometimes he drove me nuts - taking things apart - and not putting them back together at a pace I expected. I learned the hard way - he always "won". Giving me that look with a smile  - and I learned quickly - no need to push me Thomas!

We had real fun together going to Wendy's  for lunch in the late 90's - enjoying $1 menue items together and sharing such. 


Sadonia, his mother, loved him with all her heart - not only because he was her son, but because he was such a truly, good person. Her eyes, just like Nessie's eyes, would light up when talking to each other or just playing games. Nobody was more patient with her than him!


Joe, I miss you like your sister - so much!

Laurie, I am so heartbroken for you.  I do understand and fear for the loss of my soulmate.   Your time was too short together but what a time you and Joe had.   

With much love and care.  I am sorry.  Condolences to your family.   Yvonne

Joe West was in many ways the indispensable person in our days together in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering. His unending creativity and his deep understanding of how the world works made him a crucial member of countless design teams over the decades. 

Joe was both a great teacher and a great learner. Our students, both grad and undergrad, revered him, and for good reason. He was never afraid to tell a student that his or her great idea would never work, but he always did it in a way that didn't sting, and generally led to a better solution. I had the privilege of working with Joe for three decades, and I never knew him to be anything but open, friendly, and always willing to lend a hand. On our last project together, when we were creating ME 2900, it was Joe who came up with the idea for the radial air motor that became the central project for the course, and of course he designed and built the controller that is still in use fifteen years later.

It's hard to believe that he's gone so soon, but I hope his family can take comfort in knowing how much he influenced thousands of students at Ohio State over his career. He will be sorely missed for many years to come.

My condolences to Laurie and Joe's family; it was a shock to learn of Joe's passing.
Joe was a companion of mine for my entire career at OSU, starting in 2005 when he and I set up a lab on Ackerman road, while the new Scott lab was being built.  Joe had "golden hands": he was able to make any technical idea work, no matter how farfetched.  He also worked extremely well with graduate students, at that time Vladimir.  Humor was integral part of the lab;  several colleagues mentioned the noise and laughter that originated from it.  The "Thermal Materials" lab moved to Scott lab in 2006.
Much more recently, Joe joined the startup GonioTech LLC, co-founded by Wolfgang Windl, Josh Goldberger and I.  Very quickly, the GonioTech lab started looking like the lab Joe had set up in Ackerman, with a mixture of modern instruments and really old  and dusty pieces of equipment that came from Joe's home.  But the lab was functional and, I hope, fun to work in.  Again, Joe was the heart and soul of that lab.
Joe, we all miss you.

Jos Heremans.

My heartfelt condolences to Laurie and the family, may Joe rest in peace in the kingdom of God🫂
His face tells that he is a good person even though I just met him once in the wedding of Brandon and Mivez but I feel he is a good man... Rest peacefully in the arms of God💜

OBITUARY

Joe West

June 19, 1963 – June 30, 2025

Schoedinger Northwest

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