LOUIS M. KOHLMEIER Jr.

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LOUIS KOHLMEIER Obituary

KOHLMEIER LOUIS MARTIN KOHLMEIER, JR. Louis Martin Kohlmeier, Jr., 86, of Rockville, MD and Eastham, MA passed away on March 30, 2012 at the Levine Dickson Hospice House in Huntersville, NC. He was the beloved husband of 53 years to Barbara, devoted father to his daughter Ann and his son Daniel, who preceded him in death. He was respected father-in-law to Kemper, and loving grandfather to Kelsey and Eric. Born on February 17, 1926 in St. Louis, MO to the late Louis and Anita Kohlmeier, Louis served in the Merchant Marine during WWII and in the Army during the Korean War. He graduated from the University of Missouri in 1950. His distinguished career as an author and journalist began in 1952 as a staff reporter with the Wall Street Journal in St. Louis and Chicago. He joined the St. Louis Globe-Democrat in 1957 then moved to Washington, DC in 1960 to join the Wall Street Journal Washington bureau where he covered the Supreme Court, Department of Justice, executive branch departments, and Federal independent regulatory agencies. In 1959 he received the National Headliners Club award for a series of articles in the Globe-Democrat concerning railroad problems. In 1965 he received the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting and the Sigma Delta Chi award for Washington correspondence for his series of articles on the growth of the fortune of President Lyndon B. Johnson and his family. He authored two books, The Regulators: Watchdog Agencies and the Public Interest and God Save This Honorable Court: The Supreme Court Crisis. He later went on to become a professor at American University School of Communication. Upon retirement, Lou remained active in his community and pursued his passions for reading, writing, politics, gardening and the outdoors, faith and family. Contemplative, genuine, and loving, his wisdom will be deeply missed. A memorial service will be held at Chevy Chase United Methodist Church on April 22, 2012 at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Louis' honor to the Nauset Light Preservation Society, P.O. Box 941, Eastham, MA 02642. Samuel S. James, Funeral Service Lic. of Huntersville is serving the family. www.samuelsjamesfsl.com

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Published by The Washington Post on Apr. 8, 2012.

Memories and Condolences
for LOUIS KOHLMEIER

4 Entries

Barbara Babb

April 15, 2012

Ann we are so very sorry for your loss.

I know your father was a great dad and I could see how much he loved you all. I know your kids must be very sad as well.

We hope that you will have the strength you need to get through this very difficult time.Our thoughts are with you and your wonderful family.

In Sympathy,

Barbara and Bruce Babb

April 9, 2012

Barbara,Ann--My deepest sympathy for you. Was looking forward to seeing Lou at Eric"s graduation. My best to you both,see you in June---Joe

Kent Simendinger

April 6, 2012

My deepest condolences to Barbara, and Ann and her wonderful family. Lou (or Mr Kohlmeier, as I knew him for 30+ years until I felt privileged enough to call him Lou) was a thoughtful and deeply intelligent man. The words used in his obituary are those that came to my mind – “devoted” and “beloved.” His love of reading and writing, words and ideas, and sharing them all with others, was surpassed only by his love of being on Cape and in the garden, and his love for his treasured family. I have been lucky enough to bear witness to, and share to some extent, all of these passions. Two images come to mind in recalling Lou. Flashback to the 70's, and it's late afternoon/early evening in the MD suburbs of DC. Lou is trudging up the Marlyn Dr hill from the bus stop on Massachusetts Ave (how fitting!) after a long day's work. He does this day after day, year after year. On this day, he wordlessly waves and nods to Dan and I engaged in one of our endless innings of driveway baseball outside my house. No doubt exhausted, and with his own many complicated thoughts, I sense he is also respectful of our space and does not want to interfere. He continues on, rounds the bend in the distance, headed to Madawaska Rd and home, no small distance yet in this leg of the long commute. Some 30 years later, here is barefooted Lou, sitting contemplatively, toes in sand, on Coast Guard beach. It's about the same time of day as those long hikes up Bethesda's residential streets. His children and grandchildren surround him, savoring this opportunity of beauty and companionship, simply sitting in peace, or cavorting in the sand. Before him is the expanse of the majestic Atlantic Ocean, here meeting land with the sounds of pounding surf, the fresh smell of salt air, and unique postcard images of Nauset Light in the distance. And beside him, as always, is his loving wife Barbara. These moments are the just reward for a life well lived.