John Richard Witt
July 2, 1947-Nov. 4, 2017
Palo Alto, California

John Witt, July 2, 1947-Nov. 4, 2017, single father, Cherokee, E-6 Staff Sergeant, Vietnam Vet, helped himself by helping others.

On November 4, 2017, Staff Sergeant John Witt, a lifelong smoker, died swiftly from lung cancer despite emergency surgery and extraordinary care from the team at the Palo Alto VA Hospital. He was 70 years old, and except for the year he served in Vietnam defending freedom, he lived life on his own terms and never thought of death.

Even in his final hours he refused to say goodbye, just a simple reassurance to his little brother, James, “I’ll be alright.”

Born July 2, 1947, in Oakland, California, John Witt was the happy-go-lucky first son of high school sweethearts Jack and Sophie Geraldine Witt. His affable nature paved the way for a kid brother, James, who was born six years later. “Jerry” as their mother was known, rarely spoke about their Cherokee heritage but this bloodline would ultimately fuel John’s life calling -- helping Native American vets receive the health benefits they deserved.

A graduate of Cubberley High School in Palo Alto, John was a proud Eagle Scout with a thirst for adventure and the great outdoors. He began studies at Lassen College, but when his best friend Marc Eldridge was drafted in the Army to serve in Vietnam, John suggested they enlist under the Buddy System so that they could serve together. When the recruiter told them they couldn’t, since Marc had been drafted, John enlisted anyway, leaving home on Christmas Day, 1967.

Despite being stationed in completely different parts of the country, John would eventually reunite with Marc.

“Although we never wrote each other, we did to our parents,” recounts Marc. “I wrote to mine that I was going on R&R on a certain date, my mom told John’s parents and John’s parents told him what the dates were. John was stationed in Cam Rahn Bay and knew where all the guys going on R&R stayed while waiting for their flights, so he would go and check every day to see if I was there. I had gotten back and was sleeping in a bunk and was woken to John standing over me. What a surprise. He took me back to his hooch and we spent a couple of days visiting before I had to go back. He would later tell me that after seeing me there he knew he was going to make it out; my response being, 'I wish you would have told me. I wasn’t as sure about my outcome.'”

By the grace of God, both boys did make it home safely. However, when he returned in 1968, John, a gifted storyteller, had remarkably little to say about his time at war. Instead he did his best to re-enter civilian life without missing a beat. In 1969 he met his first love, Susan Holloway, and they married in 1971. Together they moved to Susanville, California, where he felt at home in the mountains. He completed his forestry degree at Lassen College then worked various jobs in the U.S. Forest Service and on fire crews, then at Chevrolet as a mechanic, then as salesperson.

In 1981, the couple divorced and John returned to Palo Alto with their 4-year-old daughter, Kelly, the ultimate love of his life.

In Palo Alto, John joined his brother James’ contracting business while their parents helped care for Kelly. With their support he made sure to share with her his love of the outdoors, enrolling Kelly in the Girl Scouts and taking her on vacations and weekend trips to the baylands, camping, fishing and to the beach.

However, it was a dark time in his life. The burden he was carrying from his time in combat took a toll on John, who pushed away those around him. Decades later he would admit to suffering from PTSD, but at the time he was in denial and doing his best to provide a good life for his daughter.

John’s life changed in 1987, when he met Chaplain Edward Bastille, the director of the Veteran’s Affairs Hospital in Menlo Park. Chaplain Bastille encouraged John to connect with his Cherokee heritage and start the Native American Special Emphasis Program (NASEP) to educate American Indian vets about the health services they were entitled to at the VA Hospital. As John got closer to his native roots his spirits soared. He traced his Cherokee ancestry on the Dawes Rolls and became a registered Tribal citizen. He began speaking at conferences and took his first airplane flight since Vietnam, something he never expected he could do. He did outreach at pow wows to enroll Native American vets to receive health benefits and he walked in a place of honor at the Stanford Pow Wow for his work.

To meet the spiritual healing needs of vets, John helped build a Native American sweat lodge at the VA Hospital in Menlo Park. It was the first ever sweat lodge on U.S. soil and at one point John proudly recounted that it had served over 5,000 vets. NASEP received a VA Best Practice Award and has been emulated by other VA health care facilities. Sweat lodges have since been recognized for their benefits in cleansing negativity and treating PTSD. For John, caring for his brothers in arms is where he found his own healing.

In 2004, John retired and pursued the things he loved most: cars, boats, and fishing in the Willows. His daily routine would begin with coffee and socializing at the Palo Alto Baking Company on California Avenue. He met many new friends there and reconnected with old ones, telling stories and sharing his world views with anyone who’d listen. He’d then head over to the Epi Deli on University for an ice tea and people watching, one of his favorite activities. He always kept an eye out for vets, and when he found one he’d be sure they knew where they could get health care and help.

John is survived by his brother, James Witt, his nephew Chris Witt, his beloved daughter Kelly Rhiana Witt, and lifelong friend and brother in arms, Marc Eldridge.

Tags: veteran