Jody Schultz passed away from cancer on 27th of May 2022 in Boise ID at age 68.
Daughter of Vern and Muriel Schultz, Jody was born in Des Moines IA and lived her childhood in Fort Madison, IA and Mount Prospect, IL. In her senior year at Prospect High School, Jody decided that she wanted to be a microbiologist, which became her lifelong occupation.
Jody went to Drake University in Des Moines for two years, then transferred to University of Iowa in Iowa City to earn her BS degree in Microbiology in 1975. She continued her education in the Dept of Microbiology and Public Health at Michigan State University, studying the microbial physiology of termites and earning her M.S degree in 1978. She then worked at the Solar Energy Research Institute in Golden CO for five years, researching the physiology of photosynthetic bacteria as a means of energy production. In 1983, she moved to Stockholm, Sweden to work for the Statens Bakteriologiska Laboratorium, identifying carbohydrate receptors of pathogenic bacteria. She was able to travel a lot during this time, visiting the former USSR and a dozen countries in Europe. Returning to the USA, she decided to go back to graduate school to study the molecular biology of starvation-induced bacteria and earned a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology in 1990 at Stanford University, Palo Alto CA.
Her interest in biotechnology led her to work at a small startup company in S. San Francisco called GlycoGen, researching a novel anti-inflammatory drug. When the research project was sold to Cytel, Jody moved to San Diego in 1991 to continue in the process development of the drug until it failed in a clinical trial. She moved to Seattle in 1996 as Director of Biologics of NeoRx Corporation, focusing on genetically engineered, antibody-based targeting vehicles for cancer clinical trials. After NeoRx terminated the project in 2002, she worked for ZymoGenetics to focus on the qualification and biological license application for a hemostatic agent. After retiring from full-time work in 2007, Jody set up her own independent business for another 11 years of biotechnology consulting. This freedom allowed her do all her favorite things: yoga, sewing, watercolors, gardening, and travel.
Jody loved to travel and had many adventures. One of Jody’s favorite trips was a 2-week SBCC geology and camping field trip to the Colorado Plateau that was taught by her sister Jan and brother-in-law Jeff. Another adventure was with her sister Laurie and brother-in-law Paul, canoeing and camping on Zimbabwe’s Zambezi River amongst crocs, elephants, and hippos. A very special trip was through northern France with her spouse, siblings, and cousins, following the path their grandfather took during WW1 in the First Division. One of her most intrepid trips was a 2-week rafting adventure with her cousin Blake through Ivvavik National Park on the Firth River, high above the Arctic Circle in Yukon, Canada.
She leaves behind her husband Patrick Sugrue, two sisters Jan Schultz (Jeff Meyer) and Laurie Schultz (Paul Linde), and her brother Jeff Schultz (Faith Zeppa). Per her request, Jody’s ashes will be laid to rest in a private family-only memorial service. Jody was much loved by her family and friends for her grace, her soft humor, her generosity, and her positive take on ordinary things. It would be hard to find a more loyal friend than Jody. She loved her family, friends, and her gregarious husband Patrick, who made her laugh every day.
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Rick Lawdahl says
June 9, 2022 at 6:59 amI extend my condolences to Patrick and the Schultz family who provided Jody comfort and support throughout her journey.
My fondest memory of Jody is the trip with extended family to northern France in the autumn of 2017 to retrace the steps of our grandfather during World War I a century later. She carefully researched and planned the trip, based on four diaries grandpa wrote during the war. To me, the delicate Mirabelle grown in that region became emblematic of the wonderful and rich trip we shared.
Jody enjoyed water coloring. In a watercolor class the final project was to paint the scene from a favorite photograph. She chose a photo from our trip, the scene on a sunny and blustery day September 14th, just after a rain shower. It was at Rue du Plateau de Breuil where grandpa narrowly escaped German aero plane and ground fire in the Second Battle of the Marme on July 21, 1918. You see, Jody did her research for this trip as carefully as she did her research in her work. That painting sits on my desk as a daily reminder of dear Jody and the trip.
Another poignant memory of Jody was a beautiful but somber afternoon of September 12th at St Mihiel American Cemetery to honor US troops who lost their lives in nearby battles. Near closing, the attendant US serviceman from Georgia asked Jody and her sister Laurie if they would do the honor of ceremoniously folding the US flag after he took it down. The room was silent but for the instructions and I don’t recall a dry eye, but for the kind serviceman.
Rest In Peace with sweet Mirabelles sweet cuz.
Jill Kuraitis says
June 9, 2022 at 5:20 pmAs Jody and Patrick’s next door neighbors and dear friends, we are extremely sad but also feel we were privileged to know Jody. She was a shining star of a human being; a lovely practitioner of grace and good humor, a loyal friend, and a beautiful soul. We miss her very much and send nothing but love to Patrick and her family.
Dave DeCota says
June 9, 2022 at 9:28 pmI didn’t get to know Jody as well as I know Patrick. But I know she was soooo smart and had a great personality. When she and Patrick spent a few days with us doing some activities that were far from her comfort zone, she took it on like a trooper and did really great. I got the sense that, although being a little nervous at first, she ended up enjoying it. It was really fun to experience that with her and we really enjoyed the entire time. I know that she will be missed by many. She will be in our thoughts. May she rest in peace.