James D. "Jim:" Otten

Jim Otten, 75, of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin passed away on March 24th, 2015, at St. Agnes Hospital in Fond du Lac. He was born in Sheboygan, WI on September 19, 1939, the son of Martin and Minnie (nee Katte) Otten.

He is survived by his loving wife and best friend of 24 years, Mona (nee Richardson); his children, Tom (Kelly Hager), and Julia (Brian) Knier; and his granddaughter Isabel Knier. In addition to his wife and children, Jim was also survived by step-children Laurie Butler and Scott (Lauren) Calvert; step-grandchildren Brandon, Amanda, Sarah, and Regan; brother Roger (Audrey) Otten; sister Marge (Harlan) Huibregtse; and many dear nieces, nephews, and friends. Jim was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Eunice Hendrikse; and brother-in-law John Hendrikse.

Jim attended Sheboygan Christian School and North High School in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. He graduated from Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1961. After teaching English at the Zeeland Michigan Christian School and Westminster Christian School in Miami, Florida, he became a Senior Systems Analyst at Eastern Airlines in 1966. He spent several years in fundraising for Trinity Christian College, Palos Heights, Illinois and then went on to manage several neighborhood healthcare facilities for Bethany Home and Hospital of the Methodist Church in Chicago, Illinois. In 1985, he was recruited as Executive Director for Health Service Systems, Inc., an affiliate of Silver Cross Hospital in Joliet, Illinois. He worked as Administrative Director of Clinic Services for Genesys Regional Medical Center in Grand Blanc, Michigan, from 1993 to 2000. During his tenure at Genesys, he was appointed Adjunct Assistant Instructor in the Department of Family Practice at Michigan State University. In 2000, Jim was recruited to Mercy Regional Medical Center in Lorain, Ohio. He retired in 2005 and then served on Mercy Foundation’s Board of Directors until 2011. Throughout his career in the healthcare industry, his continued love of teaching was realized through his thoughtful mentoring of his employees and colleagues.

In 2012, Jim and Mona moved to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin to be closer to family. He has been elected to the posts of Elder and Deacon in the churches he attended over the years and is a member of Community Church in Fond du Lac. He had a wonderful bass voice and loved to sing in church and in the Calvin College Meistersingers. Jim was a skilled fisherman throughout his life as well as a hunter in his earlier years. He was a devoted Green Bay Packer fan, no matter which state he was living in, and was known to take vacations to watch the NCAA March Madness games.

As father, grandfather, brother, uncle, husband and friend, Jim will be greatly missed. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to Community Church in Fond du Lac www.ccfdl.org, Agnesian Hospice Hope in Fond du Lac www.agnesian.com/giving, or Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, www.calvin.edu/support.

Memorial service for Jim will be held Saturday, March 28, 2015, 5:00 PM at Community Church, N6717 Streblow Drive in Fond du Lac with Pastor Ken Nabi officiating. Cremation has taken place with burial to follow in Rienzi Cemetery at a later date.

Additional information and guestbook may be found at www.ueckerwitt.com