Obituary of Peter Jay Witt

Peter Jay Witt passed away very peacefully at 8:31 p.m. on Monday, August 27, 2018, in Olympia, Washington.  He and his wife, Judy, had gone outside to view a beautiful sunset. As he returned to the comfort of their home, he drifted off to meet the Lord.  Peter was diagnosed with metastasized prostrate cancer in January and put up a valiant struggle, which in his own way, he won.

Peter was born on April 28, 1950 in Alameda, California to Donald Witt, who currently lives in an adult care home nearby, and Dorothy Witt, who predeceased him.  He also is predeceased by brother, Gary Witt, and survived by cousins with whom he was very close, Dale (Beth) Bargsten of Corvallis, Oregon, and Stanley (Denise) Bargsten of Lake City, Minnesota.

Peter served in the Air Force from 1969 to 1974 as an air traffic controller. He was stationed in Key West Florida, Okinawa and Great Falls, Montana, and was honorably discharged in 1974.

In 1968, Peter graduated from Lynbrook High School in San Jose, California. He earned an AS degree in Computer Science and Data Processing from DeAnza College, a BS degree Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing from San Jose State University and an MBA in Finance and Business Management from Portland State University. Professionally, he worked for several corporations and owned his two consulting practices, Safe Harbor Systems LLC and The HOBBS Group LLC. Peter specialized in product and business development, supply chain management and business process redesign. His work took him around the world.

In 2001, Peter left his consulting practices, moved to Olympia, and earned a degree in Culinary Arts from South Seattle Community College. Becoming a chef was a joy for him as he was able to use his creativity, artistry and love of making people smile in new ways. After working for several restaurants, he began a catering company, Dover Point Gourmet, through which he did small party catering and personalized cooking classes.

Peter married Judy Proff at the Bethlehem Baptist Church in August of 1978. They lived in Milwaukie, Oregon for nine years, the Eastmoreland Neighborhood in Portland for 14 years, and in Olympia for 17 years. Peter was very fond of animals, especially his cats, his first Ebony and now Amber.

Peter enjoyed working with wood. He studied under Judy Gale Roberts, a renowned Intarsia craftsperson. He created several beautiful intarsia pieces. Peter graduated from the Lead Thurston County Program in 2006, which inspired him to devote himself to several local volunteer activities. He was active for some years in Kiwanis and served on the Friends of the Olympia Farmers Market Board, including a term as president in 2013. He was a supporter of the Farmland Trust, and a volunteer at and advocate for Garden Raised Urban Bounty (GRUB) and the Thurston County Food Bank. In addition, Peter served for two terms on the Area Agency on Aging, including a year as chair. Peter participated in a weekly men’s coffee group that he enjoyed. He loved the Timberline Library, got to know most of the librarians well, and used their various services consistently.

A Memorial Service is scheduled for Friday, September 21, 2018 at 4:00 p.m. in Peter’s lovely home garden overlooking Puget Sound. For the exact address or more information, please contact Judy at wittjudy@comcast.net.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to GRUB (Garden Raised Urban Bounty) at 2016 Elliott Ave. NW, Olympia, WA 98502 or online at https://www.goodgrub.org/donate
OR
Thurston County Food Bank at  220 Thurston Ave. NE, Olympia, WA 98501 or online at http://thurstoncountyfoodbank.org/