John J. Cotter, Jr.

John J. Cotter, Jr. passed away on October 30th, 2022 surrounded by his family. He was 78 years old and is survived by his wife, Carolyn; niece, Cindy Centeno (Jorge and children); nephew, Rob Croonborg (Liz and children); niece, Lily Wojcik (Brandon); niece, Lindsay Schwisow (Patrick and children); and nephew, Ian Duncan. Brandee Percival (David & children) is also a special part of John's life.

John graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He worked for the DuPont Company for over 35 years, where he held supervisory positions in various departments including technical, safety, recruiting and human resources. After his retirement John worked for the Dupont Safety Consulting business as a safety consultant.

John was an avid dog lover, raising and training 10 Golden Retrievers (his hairy children) over 39 years. Ellie, one of his most recent Goldens achieved the Obedience Trial Champion (OTCH) title (often referred to as the “PhD” for dogs, and is the highest obedience honor a dog can receive) and was placed in the Obedience Champion Hall of Fame. Three additional Goldens of John's also achieved the OTCH title. John served as President of both the Golden Retriever Club of America and the Golden Retriever Foundation. Under his leadership and dedication to the Foundation over 4 million dollars was raised for canine cancer research.

John was an active sports participant and enjoyed golf, tennis, pickleball and biking, completing the RAGBRAI (the bicycle ride across Iowa) three times. He was a member of the DuPont Country Club for over 50 years where he played USTA league tennis doubles. As a lifelong Iowa Hawkeyes football fan, he traveled to Iowa many times to watch games with close friends.

John enjoyed traveling with friends and family, and favorite destinations included Tuscany, Lake Garda, Germany, Southeast Asia, the National Parks, as well as Rehoboth Beach and Lewes, DE.

John was a loyal, loving mentor and supporter of family and friends. He was the life of the party, and his booming voice and lifelong history of pranks made John an unforgettable presence at any occasion. He will be sorely missed.

The family would like to thank the doctors, nurses and staff at both Christiana Hospital and the Perlman Center at University of Pennsylvania that cared for John. 

Family and friends are invited to visit on Wednesday, November 16th, 2022 from 4:00 - 6:00 PM at the Doherty Funeral Home, 3200 Limestone Rd, Wilmington, DE 19808.  A memorial service will be held Thursday, November 17th, 2022 at 11:00 AM at Limestone Presbyterian Church, 3201 Limestone Rd., Wilmington, DE 19808.  The memorial service will be live-streamed for anyone not able to attend. The live-stream will be available and “live” about 10 minutes before the start of the actual service.  Please use the following link to access the live-stream at the appropriate time: https://limestone.online.church/

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to:

University of Iowa Center for Advancement of Engineering Excellence Fund (1 West Park Rd PO Box 4550 Iowa City, IA  52244-4550).

The Golden Retriever Foundation for Research and Rescue (P.O. Box 952732 St. Louis, MO 63195-2732 or www.goldenretrieverfoundation.org)

Limestone Presbyterian Church (3201 Limestone Rd., Wilmington, DE 19808 or www.limestonepresbyterian.org/give)

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of John J. Cotter, Jr., please visit our floral store.