Herbert Roderick Otto

Herbert Roderick Otto (called “Rod” early and “Herb” later) passed away on May 29,
2024 at Golden View Health Care Center in Meredith, NH. He was 93.

Herb was born on February 10, 1931 in Akron, Ohio, the oldest child of Alexander Vere Otto and Dorothy (Brown) Otto. His family eventually settled in Youngwood, Pennsylvania, where he grew up, along with his brother and two sisters.

After graduation from Youngwood High School in 1948, Herb attended Pennsylvania State University, earning a BS in Metallurgy in 1953. But a couple of things steered him away from a career in engineering. One was the “Introduction to Philosophy” course he took as a college senior to fulfill a graduation requirement. Herb discovered the writings of Plato and the “big questions”, and thoroughly enjoyed the class. Then later, when he was working at US Steel, a vat broke one night and molten metal spilled all over the plant floor, a mishap he witnessed firsthand–from a catwalk above.

That event may also have played a role in his decision to return to Penn State for a second bachelor’s degree–in Philosophy (1955). After a break from academics to serve in the Army (1955-1957), he returned to Penn State for a Master’s degree in Philosophy (1959). He studied mathematics one summer until he “got” how all the math concepts fit together, and he taught math for a year as an instructor at Lycoming College in Williamsport, PA.
He enrolled in the University of Pennsylvania to work on his PhD in Philosophy. He was curious and open to all philosophical questions, and he enjoyed using analytical methods to bring clarity to any issues under consideration. He was interested in symbolic logic, math, and the philosophy of language, and focused his dissertation on developing a process, using a series of steps similar to a deductive proof, to translate ordinary language into symbolic logic for the purpose of analyzing the validity of the underlying reasoning. He earned his PhD in 1968 and later published his work in The Linguistic Basis of Logic Translation.

In 1970, he moved from Philadelphia to Plymouth, NH, where he began teaching as an Associate Professor of Philosophy at (then) Plymouth State College. During the next twenty-six years he served off and on as the Chair of a small but active Philosophy Department, and on various faculty committees. He supported the development of Humanities courses at Plymouth State. He helped advocate, with his colleague Manuel Marquez-Sterling (now deceased), for the creation of the interdisciplinary Medieval Studies program, and worked with Manuel and others to start PSC’s Medieval Forum, a Medieval conference that was held at Plymouth State every April for over thirty years.

He helped revitalize the Northern New England Philosophy Association and was its Executive Secretary for many years, maintaining the mailing list of Philosophy faculty throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. The group met annually for a weekend conference, with the location rotating among the schools.

Herb was interested in computers and the possibilities for machine intelligence. In 1988, he co-edited an anthology, Perspectives on Mind, with James Tuedio, a philosophy professor at California State University, Stanislaus. Herb utilized the technology available at that time to produce this volume. To avoid retyping, he set up the College library’s Kurzweil machine reader for the blind to read all the text (out loud–but very quietly!) onto word processor floppy disks. The anthology gathered in one volume the work of philosophers that used contrasting “analytical” and “continental” approaches, methods which were often considered to be incompatible with one another. Their papers focused on the nature of mind–at a time when “artificial intelligence” was still just a concept.

Throughout his working years, Herb also had a busy family life. He married his first wife, Constance “Conni” Cini, in 1968, and they had four daughters. He and Conni later divorced, and he married Kathryn “Kit” Dustin in 1985. Herb and Kit had three more girls. All seven of his daughters loved and relied on their dad. He was present to both families, supporting the girls in their endeavors, whether by attending their games or helping with their science fair projects. When his second set of children came along, he adjusted his teaching schedule so he could help with childcare. As the kids grew up, he still reviewed and commented on their academic and professional work when asked, co-authored a paper or two, and was always available to advise by phone and in person when they brought their concerns to him.

Herb retired from teaching in 1996 and spent more time pursuing his volunteer activities. For many years, he was a member of Gateway Alliance Church in Plymouth, NH. During that time, he helped design and build the church’s steeple. He joined the Gideons International, a Christian men’s organization that places Bibles and New Testaments in hotels, hospitals, schools, and with the military. He and his wife Kit (as an “auxiliary” member) both participated, distributing Bibles and new testaments, including distributions at Plymouth State. They visited many churches in New Hampshire and Vermont to report on the Gideon ministry and served as officers at the state level of the NH/VT Gideon Association.

Over these same years, Herb helped establish Glory Christian Educational Support International, a non-profit organization that funded the building of a Christian high school for girls in Kenya called Glory Christian Academy. He made five trips to Kenya to work with the school’s founder on site, and even served as a teacher there during the school’s first trimester.

A shift in focus occurred when Herb and Kit discovered the teachings of the Catholic Church. This generated many discussions as they explored the differences between Catholic and Protestant views. Exploration eventually led to conversion: after their daughter Hannah became a Catholic in 2013, and Kit followed in 2014, Herb joined the Church at Easter in 2015. He was 84 years old.

A slogan that became popular in the 1970’s said simply, “Question Authority.” There were many times that Herb exemplified this motto. He often expressed a desire to “do his own analysis” on a particular issue before accepting others’ opinions. He loved a good discussion, preferably over a beer, and he tested people’s assumptions with his own pointed questions. Sometimes he simply ignored authority: after his high school graduation, he set off by himself from Pennsylvania in his 1931 Pontiac on a drive to Florida–without telling his parents where he was going! At other times he spoke up to authority, occasionally on behalf of colleagues who weren’t getting a fair deal, and once when he argued (successfully)–all the way up to the NH State Board of Education–that his daughter who had turned five one week “late” was ready to attend kindergarten. He was tenacious when he thought it was necessary.

He enjoyed playing games and will be remembered for some very intense negotiations involving Monopoly properties. He played poker with colleagues and with his extended family–and often won. He also took satisfaction from maintaining and painting the family homes, and was not afraid of heights, occasionally climbing up trees to trim them. He could not carry a tune himself, but enjoyed listening to those who could; he favored jazz and music from the Big Band era. He liked to spend family vacations near the ocean.

Herb is survived by his wife, Kathryn Otto, and his ex-wife, Constance Spancake, and his daughters and their spouses: Kristal Stippich (and Ryan), Kara Whitmer (and Steve), Kimberly Rietkerk (and Jeff), Kadence Otto (and Lise Gregory), Georgia King (and Cliff), Rachel Manley (and Brendan), and Hannah Kirsch (and Leo). He has nine granddaughters and one grandson: Claire Madison Stippich, Sarah Ann Stippich and Connor Todd Stippich; Haila Skye Whitmer and Eden Hope Whitmer; Elsie Grace Rietkerk, Adelyn Rose Rietkerk and Ruthie Irene Rietkerk; Karolyn Anne Kirsch and Dorothy Vera Kirsch. He is also survived by his brother and sisters: Mary Sue Beskitt (and John), Alexander Curtis Otto (and Lillian), and Barbara Jean Barron, and their families, his many nieces and nephews.

We would like to thank the private caregivers and sitters who helped with Herb, and the friends who generously contributed to help us build a wheelchair ramp while Herb was still living at home. We also thank the staff at Golden View Health Care Center and at Concord-Laconia Hospital for their compassionate care for Herb.

Calling hours will be held at Mayhew Funeral Home, 12 Langdon Street, Plymouth, NH, on Monday, June 3 from 6:00 - 8:00 PM. A funeral Mass will be held at St. Matthews Church, 11 School Street, Plymouth, NH on Tuesday, June 4 at 10:00 AM. The funeral mass will be available to view (not recorded) via live stream at www.holytrinityparishnh.org/livestream.html The committal service at Blair Bridge Cemetery in Campton will follow the funeral mass. A luncheon and sharing of memories will follow at St Matthew Church in Plymouth, NH at noon.

In lieu of flowers, gifts in Herb’s memory may be made to a local nonprofit that Herb supported, Haven Pregnancy Services, PO Box 923, Plymouth, NH 03264, or to the Alzheimer’s Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Fl. 17, Chicago, IL 60601 ( https://www.alz.org/ ).

Arrangements are under the care of Mayhew Funeral Homes and Crematorium. To sign the online book of memories, go to mayhewfuneralhomes.com.