Milton V. Roth

Milton V. Roth, 87, of Woodinville, Washington, died Wednesday, January 15, 2014, at the Evergreen Hospice Center in Kirkland, Washington. He was born July 18, 1926, in Wittenberg, Missouri, son of Victor and Dora (nee Dorothea Kasten) Roth. He married Billie (nee Bertha Norris) of Marion, North Carolina, in Lake Charles, Louisiana, on May 11, 1946. Milton is survived by his wife, Billie; his daughters, Carol and Rebecca (Becky) Roth of Woodinville, Washington, Vicky Hardy of Issaquah, Washington and Ellen (Don) Ladwig of St. Charles, Missouri; his grandchildren, Leslie Tucker of Eureka, Missouri, Laura (Kevin) Sokoloski of Burien, Washington, Amy (Hans) Hentschel of Lawrenceville, Georgia, and Christopher Hardy of San Francisco, California; and his great-grandchildren, Jacob Tucker, David and Ryan Sokoloski and Aidan and Grace Hentschel. He was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Richard Roth, of Frohna, Missouri, his sister, Verna Maevers, of Egypt Mills, Missouri, and his sister, Norma Chapman, of Jackson, Missouri. Milton was only 17 when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1943 during the height of World War II. He survived boot camp at Farragut, Idaho, and was sent to Iowa State A&M College in Ames, Iowa, for training on the theory, design and operation of diesel engines. He was then sent to Chicago, Illinois, for advanced training on installation of diesel engines, followed by additional training in Beloit, Wisconsin, on diesel engines for the Navy's amphibious assault ships, the LSM's (Landing Ships, Medium). Following training on installation of LSM's diesel engines at Little Creek, Virginia, Milton was assigned to the engine crew of USS LSM-264, which was being built in nearby Kerney Shipyard in Newark, New Jersey. Following commissioning in New York Harbor in 1944, the LSM-264 and its crew soon found themselves in the midst of one of the greatest sea and land battles of World War II . . . the battle of Iwo Jima. One of the most famous pictures of the battle of Iwo Jima shows the USS LSM-264 on the beachhead at Iwo Jima while the Marines burrow in the sand despite the heavy rain of artillery fire from the enemy. Although damaged by enemy fire, the LSM-264 and its crew survived the deadly Iwo Jimo campaign. After the end of World War II, the LSM-264 was sent to Lake Charles, Louisiana, for decommissioning. Around this time, Milton met and married Billie. After the USS LSM-264 was decommissioned, Milton was assigned to the engine crew of a U.S. Navy salvage tug operating out of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, where he remained until he was honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy on July 20, 1947 as a Motor Machinist Mate First Class. Milton was employed in 1948 by the Missouri Utilities Company to operate and maintain an emergency and peakload electrical power plant in Charleston, Missouri. This job and his Navy experience with diesel engines eventually landed him a position in 1952 as a diesel engineer on towboats on the inland waterways. He was hired in 1966 by Missouri Barge Line of Cape Girardeau to be one of their chief engineers. He eventually advanced to be their port engineer in 1975 and remained so until his retirement in 1990. Milton was licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard as both a chief engineer and a towboat operator and the Missouri Barge Line named one of their towboats the "Milton V. Roth" after he had supervised its extensive refurbishing. Following his retirement from Missouri Barge Line, Milton, Billie and Becky traveled extensively within the U.S., primarily by car. They visited almost every National Park and Monument and almost every state (except those in the Northeast). In 2002, they moved to live with their daughter, Carol, in Woodinville, Washington. When he wasn't traveling, Milton enjoyed gardening and fishing, particularly when the catfish were biting. He and Billie spent many a summer morning on the Elk's Lake in Cape Girardeau reeling in one big catfish after another. After moving to Washington, Milton continued to enjoy gardening and sitting out on the deck or on the bench under the giant cedar tree in the backyard to watch the local wildlife (deer, bears, cougars, raccoons, and the occasional skunk) wander through. He also become quite a model train aficionado, creating an entire landscape in one bay of the garage, complete with towns, farms, rivers, mountains, beaches and rail yards. He also enjoyed watching the silly antics of the family cat, Kicia. Milton was a member of the Elk's Lodge, a lifetime member of VFW Post 3838 and a member of St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Cape . He became a member of the Wooden Cross Lutheran Church in Woodinville, Washington in 2002. A Celebration of Milton's Life will be held at his home in Woodinville, Washington, on February 22, 2014. In lieu of flowers, Milton specifically requested that donations be sent to Homeward Pet Adoption Center in Woodinville, Washington.

Tributes

Milton V. Roth

January 15, 2014