Obituary

Rodney Alva Wycoff, Jr.

Rodney Alva Wycoff, Jr. died on July 22nd at 1:05pm on a warm summer’s day, the sun shining through his window with the sound of eucalyptus trees swaying in the wind.  Surrounded by his three children, Rod took his last breath on the final note of Gabriel Faure’s “Après un rêve” – an aptly fitting song selected by an algorithm (though, had he been conscious, he would’ve chosen Iggy Pop’s “Lust for Life”).

Born an only child to Florence and Rodney, Sr. in Stockton, CA on October 3, 1942, Rod was of the Silent Generation and frequently lived up to that reputation. He also carried a brilliant, dry wit that made everyone, especially his late wife of 55 years, Marina laugh and sprain their eyes rolling them.

Vocationally, Rod was a commercial real estate appraiser and long a part of the appraisal institute. Avocationally, he was a photographer, car enthusiast, and lover of hounds. He enjoyed travel from Asia to Africa and was an ardent Anglophile – when it came to Britcoms and mysteries, Rod loved them indiscriminately. He enjoyed food of all kinds but always wanted meat with whatever was on offer. Rod built a reasonable collection of Aloha shirts and wore them unironically. A tan, bald man, he favored bright colors, flat caps, and sunglasses. He was a healthy and fastidious, walking five miles per day up until four months before his passing.

At the end of May 2024, Rod was diagnosed with a rare variant of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. His decline was fast, but there wasn’t a moment alone in his final months or moments – his family was always with him. “You know, people told me my kids were good,” he reflected one of those afternoons, “but until they started carrying me and changing my clothes, I didn’t believe it.” He kept everyone from nurses to family laughing up until the end.

A little over two years after the passing of Marina, Rod joined her in heaven. No doubt he was greeted by his many dogs wagging their tails and Marina wrapping him in one of her cushy hugs. Rod is survived by his three children – Jeff, Megan, and Peter – and eight grandchildren. His amble, with, and his light will forever be missed.