Dwight Zulauf

Dwight Zulauf Dwight Judson Zulauf, beloved father, grandfather and educator passed away peacefully at the Hearthstone Retirement Community in Seattle, WA on July 26, 2019 from complications of dementia. He was born November 7, 1927 in Aurora Colorado, the third child of Raymond Hugo Zulauf and Sally Kate (Gibbs) Zulauf. As a young boy, the family relocated to Phoenix, Oregon. He attended the University of Oregon surrounding a brief stint in the U.S. Army in 1945, was a walk-on reserve on the U of O basketball team and received a B.S. degree in Business in 1948. He then earned a M.S. at the Columbia School of Business in 1949, yet only 21. He began his teaching career at Pacific Lutheran College in 1949, where he met and married Emilie (Lee) Elizabeth Bishop in 1950. He received additional post-graduate education at the U of O, the London School of Economics, and received a Ph.D. in Accounting at the University of Minnesota. Dwight was co-founder and the first Dean of the School of Business in 1960 as PLC became Pacific Lutheran University. He authored, co-authored, reviewed and edited numerous books and scholarly articles. He was a frequent presenter at academic conferences and seminars. His great passion, however, was for the classroom and the students. Honors accorded him by PLU included the Regency Professorship Award in 1972. The Dwight J. Zulauf Roster of Accounting Scholars Award and the Dwight Judson Zulauf Alumni Chair, PLU's first endowed chair, were created in his name. Following five-years as Professor Emeritus from 1985-1990 at Humboldt State University, he returned to PLU through his final retirement in 1998. He held several visiting professorships notably at Massey University in New Zealand, and the Riga Technical University in Latvia. In his local community he was active in outreach and consultancy for PLU, and service on multiple charitable boards including Good Samaritan Hospital, the Pierce County Health Council, Lutheran Social Services, and the Health Systems Agency. He served as a consultant to the Washington State Agricultural Commission and the Washington State Hospital Commission. His beloved Lee passed away in December 2009. He rekindled a romance from his days at the University of Oregon with Wilma Jeanne (Wilson) Swartz in 2010. She and Dwight found love again and were married on June 26, 2011, in Muskegon, MI. Following her death on July 6, 2016 he returned to the Pacific Northwest, eventually taking up residence at the Hearthstone Retirement Community in Seattle. Dwight's Christian faith was a lifelong source of strength, comfort, guidance, and joy for him. He strove to follow his Lord's example and to live a life of love, kindness, charity, forgiveness and selflessness in grace through Christ. He was a long-time member of Trinity Lutheran Church dating from the 1950s. He was preceded in death by an infant sister, sister Carolyn (Zulauf) Wier, and niece Carol Roseborough. He is survived by his daughter Kathryn (Zulauf) and Geoffrey Harris and their three children: Morgan, Adrian, and Erin; son David Zulauf and his daughter Zoe, David's wife Shelli and her son Gavin Garza; son John and Beth Zulauf and their four children Joshua, Ellen, Nathan, and Shawn; his great niece Denise (Roseborough) Johnson; great nephew Brad Roseborough; and his step-children from Wilma: Ted Swartz, Dawn Swartz, Tim Swartz, Amanda (Swartz) Williams, their spouses and children. A celebration of life service will be held on Sunday, September 1st at 2:00 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 12115 Park Ave. So. Tacoma, WA 98444. Memorial contributions, if desired, may be made to the Alfred and Alice Bishop Memorial Scholarship at PLU.