Hartmut Hochst

FITCHBURG-Hartmut Höchst, age 68, of Fitchburg, passed away on Monday, March 27, 2017, at Agrace HospiceCare in Fitchburg. He was born Sept. 7, 1948 in Steindorf, Germany. Hartmut went to school in Wetzlar, did a chemistry apprenticeship with Leitz, and then went to college and studied nuclear chemistry. After getting his degree, he realized he liked physics more and went to Berlin to study physics at the Freie Universität. There, Hartmut married his high school sweetheart, Ellen. After earning his PhD in Physics in Saarbrücken, he worked as a post doc at the Max-Planck-Institut in Stuttgart. In 1983, he took his family to Madison for what he thought would be one or two years in the USA. He worked at the UW Synchrotron Radiation Center as assistant director of research and retired in 2010. Hartmut loved his family and doted on his grandkids. He loved sailing and moored his treasured boat "Deutsche Welle" in front of the Memorial Union. Hartmut took his first sailing trip to the British Virgin Islands in 2008, and decided to retire ASAP. After retiring, he and his partner in crime, Ellen, spent three weeks every spring sailing the BVI. Hartmut's other hobbies were skiing, biking, photography, gardening, and cooking. He loved to travel (he had been to over 30 countries) and recently visited Cuba, Peru, Bolivia, Vietnam and Cambodia. Hartmut is survived by his wife of 46 years, Ellen; his sons, Daniel (Amanda), Philipp (Sara) and Jonathan (Lori); his beloved grandkids, Brady, Harrison, Finley, Avery, Everett and Blake; and his sister-in-law Ulla Leyser (Ludwig) and two nephews Christoph (Louisa) and Steffen (Janine). He was preceded in death by his parents, Richard and Else Höchst; and his parents-in-law, Willi and Marianne Lehrmund. A Visitation and Celebration of Hartmut's life will be held at GUNDERSON FITCHBURG FUNERAL AND CREMATION CARE, 2950 Chapel Valley Rd., Fitchburg, at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 8, 2017, with fellowship and refreshments to follow. The family thanks the UW Carbone Cancer Center and Agrace HospiceCare for their compassionate care. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the UW Carbone Cancer Center or Agrace HospiceCare. "I am sailing away, set an open course for the virgin sea. I've got to be free to face the life that's ahead of me. On board I'm the captain, so climb aboard. .....I look to the sea, reflections in the waves spark my memory. Some happy, some sad, I think of childhood friends and the dreams we had...." Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com. Gunderson Fitchburg Funeral & Cremation Care 2950 Chapel Valley Rd. (608) 442-5002