Larry Kowitt

Larry Kowitt, 82, of Bluffton, SC, died peacefully at home on August 5, 2020. Larry is survived by his wife of 59 years Susan, their son Matthew and wife Casey Inman, daughter Jennifer Boerner and husband John, daughter Stefanie, grandsons Quinn, Nolan, and Holden, and sister Sandy Toback. Born Larry Itzkowitz on April 3, 1938 to parents Isadore Edward Itzkowitz and Kate Itzkowitz (nee Kaden) in Brooklyn, New York, the family name changed to Kowitt in 1953. He graduated from City College of New York with an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering in 1963, and received his Masters degree in industrial engineering from Brooklyn Polytechnic in 1969. From 1969 until 2009 Larry and his family lived in Parsippany, New Jersey, except for the period 1975 to 1979 when they lived in Foster City, California. Following college ROTC training, Larry entered active duty in the US Army Corp of Engineers in 1963, where he served for two years in France building NATO airfields. Accompanied by Susan, the two explored France and western Europe while starting their family abroad. After several years of Army reserves, he briefly returned to active duty in March 1970, and was honorably discharged at the rank of Captain. Larry continued to love international travel, and he and Susan enjoyed many trips including to France, Italy, Israel, and Jordan. A highlight was the three celebration trips they took over the last decade with each grandson on the occasion of their bar mitzvahs, visiting Turkey, Prague, France, and Spain. Larry’s civilian career began as an engineer at Vertrod and then Shulton corporations. He shifted into computer services in 1969 when he began working at Tymshare, a move that brought computing into his home more than a decade ahead of the personal computer revolution. Larry also worked for University Computing Corporation, Computer Sciences Corporation, and Hughes Network Systems. Together with Dr. Robert Marlin, Larry co-founded Careforms Inc in 1981, an early innovator in automated data collection for clinical drug studies. In 2001 he founded The Kowitt Group, a nationwide real estate appraisal firm. Larry was universally loved and appreciated for his quick wit, dry sense of humor, easy-going personality, and gentle demeanor. One example was the advice he gave his son-in-law when asked for his blessing to wed: “Just remember the 75/25 rule. Let her win 75% of the arguments and save the 25% for the ones you care about.” Larry was an avid golfer, a pastime he enjoyed year-round after moving from New Jersey to South Carolina in 2009. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to a memorial fund established in Larry’s memory to support Parkinson’s Disease research at Hadassah Medical Center. Make checks payable to Hadassah, and add the memo “IMO Larry Kowitt TLAK08B”. Mail donations to Hadassah, PO Box 1100, New York, NY 10268-1100.