John Suttle

John Francis Suttle

1914-2013

Passed away peacefully Monday, September 9. Born and raised in Denver, the son of a bank clerk and homemaker, Jack loved the outdoors, camping, and fishing. At 18, Jack enrolled at Colorado University, where he majored in chemistry. During the summers, Jack drove a "jammer" bus at Glacier National Park, where he met the love of his life, Betty, to whom he was married for 70 years. After graduating from CU, Jack worked for DuPont for a year, then left to obtain his Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve. Following graduate school, Jack enjoyed appointments at the U of Indiana and Portland U before settling down to a tenured position at the University of New Mexico, where he was a member of the faculty from 1947 to 1956. In 1956, Jack was chosen by UC Berkeley to set up the graduate program at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and two years later was appointed Personnel Director at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, where he worked until 1970. Jack tried a two-year consulting stint in Washington DC with the American Chemical Society, and then retired at the age of 58, his 4 children grown. Jack and Betty moved to Taos in 1973 where both he and Betty were active in charitable and community endeavors. Jack and Betty returned to California three times to help raise grandchildren, the last move in 1997. No mere author, teacher, and mentor of scholars, Jack's true legacies are his descendants and surrogate descendants. He and Betty raised 4 educated children, averaging 3 degrees each, helped raise six grandchildren, and followed their careers and lives as a father and friend for almost 70 years. He profoundly shaped our lives, and we will always be in his debt. Jack was predeceased by his sister Marie, his wife Betty, and his grandson Damien. He is survived by daughter Susan Rojas (Jose), sons John (Mojdeh), Richard, and Peter; by grandchildren Katrina Rojas, Annie Rojas-Jacobs (Jeff), Eileen Rojas, Jessica McBride (Sean), and JJ Suttle; and by great grandson Alejandro Jacobs. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Jack's name to The Myositis Association in Alexandria, VA.