Fred Madison Utter

Fred Madison Utter, 91, beloved husband, father, friend, and colleague, passed away peacefully on March 5th at his home, with his wife Nancy by his side.

Fred was born November 25th, 1931, to John and Besse Utter. He grew up in West Seattle and graduated from West Seattle High School. Fred married his soul mate, Nancy, in 1958. For 65 years, she was his rock, his companion and loving partner in life. Together they raised 3 children, Jennifer, Jeffrey, and Judy. Grounded by his family, he lived a rich and satisfying life.

Dr. Fred Utter was widely recognized as the founding father of the field of fishery genetics, but to the numerous graduate students whom he nurtured and mentored over his prolific career, he was lovingly called, "Mother Utter". His professional journey began in 1954 at the University of Puget Sound with a bachelor's degree in chemistry. This was followed by an MS (1959) in Fisheries from the University of Washington and a PhD (1969) in Genetics from University of California Davis. From 1969- 1988, he led the genetics group at National Marine Fisheries Service. After his "retirement", Fred remained a tireless advocate for fishery management. His many accomplishments include serving as an affiliate professor at the UW; as editor of the Transaction of the American Fisheries Society and North American Journal of Fisheries Management; as President of the Genetics Section of American Fisheries Society and earning an honorary PhD as a visiting Professor of Genetics at the Universities of Girona and Oviedo in Spain. He authored well over 100 scientific publications and co-edited, "Population Genetics and Fisheries Management", a book still used as a standard in the field. Fred was a pioneer and visionary in the field of population genetics. He was one of the first to apply biochemical genetic techniques to understanding and managing fish populations which had a profound and lasting impact on current methods of marine conservation. His work lives on through a new generation of scientists, mentored by Fred's scientific "offspring".

Initiated by his oversea work opportunities, Fred and Nancy had many travel adventures. Because Fred loved trains, they rode them all over Europe and Australia. A highlight of their travels was walking the Coast-to-Coast path across England. To their surprise and delight, Fred and Nancy discovered they were perfect travel partners.

Beyond his professional career, Fred had many other passions and accomplishments. In 1968, he was a charter member of the Northaven Retirement Community, a low-income home for seniors. He was rewarded by serving in the operation and growth of this unique, ground-breaking organization. He was an early member of a men's breakfast group that was started in 1969 and continues enriching the life of men today. Through this group he developed some of his most cherished, life-long friendships. But his most enduring passion was playing the cello. A broken finger after high school graduation thwarted his plans to become a professional musician, but throughout the years, he engaged in multiple weekly chamber music sessions to the mutual pleasure of all participants.

Above all, Fred was a family man who lived humbly and loved unconditionally. He treasured any time spent with his wife, kids, grandkids, and grand dogs. Through summers at the Eagle Lake property on Orcas Island, he instilled his love of nature. Through playing duets, he instilled his love of music. Through his wonderful poetry, he instilled words of wisdom, moral guidance, and compassion, (along with some off-color limericks). But it was through games such as cribbage that he shared with us his inner child, and the ability to find joy and fun in just being together, causing his internal tail to wag.

Fred is survived by his wife, Nancy Utter; his children, Jennifer Utter, Jeffrey Utter and Judy Dahlberg (David); his grandchildren, Rosie O'Neil, Callie Dahlberg, and Elise Dahlberg; his brother, Timothy Utter. He is preceded in death by his parents, second mother, Elizabeth Padfield Utter, and his brother, Robert F. Utter. He was comforted with the thought of joining them when it was his time to go.

A celebration of Fred's life will be held on May 13th from 1-3:30 PM at The Tim Noah Thumbnail Theater in Snohomish.

In honor of Fred, pet a dog, hug those you love and play lots of cribbage. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Hope link or a charity of your choice.