- Date Of Birth: December 11, 1944
- Date Of Death: September 29, 2020
- State: Massachusetts
Dr. John Thomas Schott1944-2020 PLYMOUTH, MASS — Dr. John Thomas Schott (Lt. Col., RET, USAFR) passed away in the quiet, early morning of Tuesday, September 29 at Newfield House, surrounded by family holding his hands. He was 75 years old. ALS may have ended his life, but the legacy and spirit of John will live on and be passed down to generations by his example of what love can mean, and how any of the darkest circumstances can be viewed through the light of what is good. He was a quiet, thoughtful man of few words, but had a gigantic, angelic, kind, and caring heart. He is survived by his son Brian, Brian’s wife Lyndsay and their children Ethan and Myles of Whitefish, MT; his son Mark and Mark’s wife Elna Gordon of Ukiah, CA; his daughter Amy and her husband Martin Wiedemann of Boulder Creek, CA; his sister Mary McCollum of Middletown, NY, her husband Bill and their family; and many other relatives and dear friends. The family is especially grateful to Cathy and Bob Pickett. The son of Carman and Elizabeth Schott, John grew up in the Bronx. He graduated from Regis High School in 1962, and then attended Fordham University, where he earned a B.S. in physics (cum laude) in 1966. He continued at Fordham and earned a master’s degree in 1967 in experimental solid-state physics, and a PhD in 1970 in mathematical physics and particle theory. His children have tried to read his thesis, but it is out-of-this-world, like him. His true love story began at Fordham during graduate school, when he saw Barbara Blaikie from across the classroom and was smitten at first sight. He said his marriage with Barbara was a “match made in heaven” and the outgoing and energetic nature of Barb was a needed balance for his own quiet character. She was the love of his life and “wicked smaht” as well, graduating with a master’s degree in physics. After marrying, John and Barbara moved to the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, where he became faculty of the highest rank in the department of physics from 1970-74. Their son Brian was born in 1971, and Mark soon followed in 1973. Longing for closer family connections, John took an appointment in 1975 at the Air Force Cambridge Research Labs and Rome Air Development Center at Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts, conducting research on semiconductors. Just before leaving Colorado, he took his young family on his first and only solo flight in a single engine plane. The Schotts moved to Stow, MA, and their daughter Amy was born in 1976. John continued to serve in the Air Force Reserves until 1993 and earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. His children always had trouble telling their friends what their Dad did for work as a scientist. They are pretty sure he helped invent and create small things in computers to make things go fast. John was at the forefront of research and development of advanced solid-state materials and devices like integrated circuits. He did pioneering research in silicon-on-insulator materials and deep level transient spectroscopy over the course of his career. From 1983-2007, he earned promotions from facility chief, to branch chief, to business program manager of the Electromagnetics Technology Division of the Air Force Research Laboratory, where he managed all the research and development functions for an 80-person division. Barb and John moved to The Pinehills in Plymouth in 2006, where they retired. Truly, John’s most proud achievement was being married to Barbara. John loved music and enjoyed singing in a variety of chorus groups with Barb. Music touched his heart and soul, and when Barbara developed Alzheimer’s disease in 2008, he made music an important medicine for her struggle. It connected them to the chorus of the cosmos. His devotion to his wife through her passing in May 2018 was a testament to his spirit of kindness, love, and absolute devotion, no matter what. Being a father was his other great joy; his kids his other true loves. He’d do anything for them. Anytime. He’d literally try to run through walls to help his children. A coach and mentor to so many, whether it was CCD at church, years spent coaching soccer, or little league, he will always be remembered for his kind approach and his caring nature. People became their better selves around once wrote, “I think that the sound of human voices singing in chorus is the second most beautiful sound in the world. But to me the most beautiful sound in the world is the sound of children that comes to you from a distant playground.” He adored his two grandchildren, Ethan (now 15) and Myles (now 8), with whom he found extreme happiness playing and laughing. John delighted in the innocence of children. Over many years he took his family on vacations to the Cape, or to the Vineyard and Nantucket, or to ski in New Hampshire and Maine. Barb taught him to ski on the local Blue Hills, and he was always enamored by her joy in tackling or introducing him to anything new, like sailing, or full body clams. He also enjoyed many years of canoeing and kayaking, as well as playing golf and target shooting. He could strum a tune on the guitar.A man of jokes, laughter, and wry humor, he liked to say, “Everything in moderation— including moderation.” But John never moderated the amount of love in his heart. He especially enjoyed reading the comics after scanning the bad news, and eating cookies for sweetness to wash it all of his favorite jokes was pretending to be a Yankees fan in order to tease Boston Red Sox fans, though he always conceded that New England Clam Chowder was far superior than its Manhattan cousin. He brought Barb to the top of the Green Monster for a game at Fenway Park just before her disease became too much. His quiet nature opened up over the years, and hearing a John Schott story was not to be missed. He was ever specific and thoughtful with his the years, the staff at Newfield House became family to Barbara and John, as well as to their children. Brian, Mark, and Amy cannot express enough how much that love and care has meant to them. The rose garden at Newfield, gazing over Plymouth Harbor, the music, cheese and crackers and wine, some shuffle board, good meals and conversation, creating new friendships, and so much shared laughter—all were special blessings in a time of great left this world on his own terms. The first day he could not get out of bed was his last. He “threw in the towel”—a phrase he had used with his children—and said goodbye. He will sorely be missed.
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