Alex Kotch, Jr.

Dr. Alex Kotch Dr. Alex Kotch passed away at home on March 8, 2014. He was born in Edwardsville, PA in August of 1926. Alex attended Penn State University and received a PhD. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champagne in 1950. While on a Fulbright Fellowship in The Netherlands, Alex met Anne. They married in 1952. Alex was a Research Chemist for Dupont Co, Program Director for Organic Chemistry at the National Science Foundation, Professor and Associate Chairman of the Chemistry Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Assistant Director for Information and Education at the Solar Energy Research Institute (NREL), and Director of Research and Program Development and Professor of Chemistry at the University of North Dakota-Grand Forks. Known for his encyclopedic knowledge of opera and classical music, Alex was an active supporter of the Colorado Symphony, Opera Colorado, Denver Lyric Opera Guild, and the Metropolitan Opera. Alex was also active in the Parkinson†™s Association of the Rockies, serving a term as president and facilitating support groups with Anne. Survivors include wife Anne; children Marianne (Paul Heller) of Barre, VT; Axel of Madison, WI; Robert (Linda) of Ridgewood, NJ; Jennifer of Longmont, CO; and grandchildren Christopher Cassell of Montpelier, VT, and Caroline and Evelyn Kotch of Ridgewood, NJ. A memorial gathering will be held at 10:30 on April 11th at the Jefferson Unitarian Church, 14350 W 32nd Ave, Golden, CO. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Alex†™s memory may be made to the Parkinson†™s Association of the Rockies, 1325 S. Colorado Blvd., #204, Denver, CO 80222, or the Denver Lyric Opera Guild, P.O. Box 339, Englewood, CO 80151.