Bennett A. Cozadd

1938 – 2012

Mercer Island resident Ben Cozadd died on April 19th of complications following surgery. Ben Cozadd was a principal at JDW/Kieburtz LLC and the Finance Director of Interior Design International at the time of his death. He was born and raised in Warren, Ohio, where as a Boy Scout he earned the rank of Eagle Scout. He was a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity at Cornell University. Following Naval ROTC and graduation from Cornell University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, he was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Navy, and selected and trained as a nuclear submariner. After his service with the U.S. Navy, Ben earned an MBA from Harvard Business School. He worked in corporate finance for Corning Glass Works before relocating to Seattle where he worked in venture capital and finance. He is survived by his wife, Shirley LaFollette; son, Bruce Cozadd and daughter-in-law Sharon Hoffman (Menlo Park, CA); daughter, Chris Cozadd and son-in-law Andrew Gilmour (Falls Church, VA); step-daughter Angela Eggelston (Sammamish), step-son Randy LaFollette (Seattle), and nine grandchildren. Also surviving Ben is his brother, Phil Cozadd (Loudon, TN). He was preceded in death by his first wife, Dale. Ben was a mechanical whiz, with a remarkable ability to fix nearly anything. In the Navy, he was involved with operational testing and validation, and deployed on early nuclear submarines. After earning his MBA he worked in corporate finance and venture capital, applying an engineer’s approach to finance. Ben loved boating, particularly cruising in the San Juans; also music and the arts, and attending the Seattle Symphony and Husky football games. He was an enthusiastic member and former Commodore of the Seattle Yacht Club. In addition to other interests, Ben took great delight in introducing his grandchildren to the joys of boating. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that any memorial contributions be made in Ben’s name to the SYC Foundation at the Seattle Yacht Club to assist sailing programs for underprivileged children and for training youth engaged in amateur competition, including young Olympians. Please visit http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/bencozadd/Homepage.aspx to see and share memories of Ben.