Jo FITCH

September 20, 1916 - September 11, 2015 ONE OF A KIND. Born in Chicago to Arthur and Bertha Beck, Jo Fitch attended the University of Chicago, where she studied medicine, but ultimately chose a career in interior design. In 1945, after serving in the Army Nurses' Corps, she married Marvin 'Bud' Fitch, a Chicago architect, a marriage of two intensely creative people which lasted 70 years. Working as a designer and landscape architect in the Chicago area, Jo favored the Scandinavian style in interiors and a Japanese aesthetic in landscaping. She was a stickler for proper pruning, often to the dismay of new acquaintances. She never lacked for an original perspective, and remained sharp and witty to the end. She cultivated a unique style, loved to paint and draw, and was a fervent student of nature. In her extended family, a summer stay with Aunt Jo in Chicago was considered a rite of passage. She is survived by her husband Bud, daughter Laurel Fitch Gillette, a Los Angeles architect, and son Jon Fitch, a Washington D.C. landscape architect. A son, writer Robert Fitch, died in 2011. She was the fond grandmother of five--Dana, Mara and Sean Gillette of Los Angeles and Eli and Eva Fitch of Washington D.C., and great grandmother of two, Addie and Rachel. After living her last years in Los Angeles, her final resting place is Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago.