Marlin Duane Rott, 86, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, went to be with his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ on Friday, November 1, 2024. Shortly after his death, his beloved wife, Rosemary Rott, passed away as well on November 14, 2024. A joint Celebration of Life for Marlin and Rosemary will be held from 9 - 11 a.m. on Saturday, November 16, 2024, at New Covenant Bible Church, located at 3090 N Center Point Rd, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52411.
He was born November 2, 1937, in Harvard, Illinois, to Ralph and Lorraine Rott, the middle child of three. He grew up loving music, playing the trumpet and singing baritone in the concert choir. He also played high school basketball and football and took up tennis later in life. After graduating, he joined the army where he served in missile guidance and control systems and was stationed in Wiesbaden, Germany in the mid 1950’s. Shortly thereafter he married the love of his life Rosemary–his wife of 64 years. They have five children, 17 grandchildren, and 29 great grandchildren.
While Marlin began his army career in electronics, his civilian career began with quality control at Admiral Corp and then programming for IBM (SRA–laying the groundwork for the ACT, ITED, and ITBS exams). He continued his career in corporate programming and later digital publishing and color separation. In 2000 he and Rosemary retired to Florida. They returned to Iowa in 2016 to be closer to family.
Marlin was an avid reader, reading hundreds of books (and creating a program to organize them). He also enjoyed all things aviation. Airshows were a joy for him, and he took a few of his grandkids to experience the thrill of the flight. He built radio-control model planes and was currently working on a B-38 with a seven-foot wingspan!
He loved watching all sports, most recently women’s basketball and Caitlin Clarke. His biggest joy was his family. He was devoted to Rosemary–caring for her at home and then attending to her at the care center for the past five years. Marlin attended New Covenant Bible Church and participated in an ongoing men’s Bible study.
He is survived by his children: Michelle (Rick) Hunt of Dubuque, Pam (Mike) Lyons of Troy, OH, Christine (Ed) Luebe of Marion, Michael (Lori) of Marion, Kim (Jon) Lubke of Ridgeway, IA, and his many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his brother Darrell (Rose) of Florida and his sister Betty (Nels) Hogland, also of Florida.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift to Unity Point Hospice.
The family would like to especially thank UnityPoint Hospice and Hiawatha Care Center.
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