John Howard Absalom, III, 83, of Christiansburg, passed away Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. He was preceded in death by his parents, John Howard Absalom, II, and Ann Tully Rigaud (Charles); spouse, Karen Lee Absalom; son, Michael Dean Rotsel; sister, Mary Elizabeth Absalom Tuck; and brother, Howard David Absalom.
Survivors include his daughters, Laura Gillie (Tupper) and Kristin Poirier (Chris); son, John Absalom IV (Caroline); grandchildren, Taylor (Logan), Ashleigh, Allison, Tupper, Jr., Lexie, Stephanie, and Leandra; great grandchildren, Londyn and Teegan; his beloved Tully first cousins, in addition to many other relatives and friends.
John Howard Absalom III was born on May 18, 1941, in West Virginia. At the age of 10, he moved to Alexandria, Virginia and eventually graduated from Hammond High School. One of his passions early in life was baseball, particularly the Brooklyn Dodgers. He would often talk about listening to the infamous “Shot Heard Round the World” on the radio (10/3/51) and how his mother held him back from school the next day because he was so upset. John attended college at Rochester Institute of Technology in upstate New York where he forged deep friendships that would last a lifetime. He, his fraternity brothers and their wives met faithfully every year after college up until his final year (60 years of fulfilled reunions at Sodus Bay!). At RIT he also played basketball, enthusiastically supported the hockey team, and was voted “Mr. Campus”.
After graduation, he received a commission in the United States Air Force and married Sandra Tolbert of Arlington. During his service in the Air Force John and Sandra were stationed in Sevilla, Spain, where John’s two oldest children were born, John Howard Absalom IV and Laura Michelle Absalom. After six years of honorable service with the US military the family settled in Columbia, Maryland, where their children were raised. While working in the printing industry, John went to night school at Catholic University in Washington DC and earned a law degree. For the next few decades, he represented several printing companies as corporate counsel and VP Director of Human Resources for Buckman Laboratories.
Fatherhood suited John well, he took leadership positions aligned with the children’s interests and became an accomplished and respected soccer coach. Although John and Sandra’s marriage did not last, they remained partners in co-parenting the children and stayed friends for the rest of their lives. Ultimately John met the love of his life, Karen Lee Rotsel. The two were married on July 31, 1982, and John became a parent to Karen’s children, Kristin and Michael. They were not referred to as his “stepchildren”, John loved them deeply and took up the role of a devoted and loyal father. Kristin and Michael were his children, and he was their dad. John and Karen eventually moved to Memphis, Tennessee in 1990. During their time in Memphis, John took on an administrative job with an International Corporation, Buckman Laboratories, which sent him around the globe. As he did everywhere throughout his life, John forged deep and lasting friendships through this work. He counts dear friends from many different nations.
Just after the turn of the century, John and Karen moved to Tucson, Arizona, where they enjoyed time with their daughters and grandchildren. In 2018, they moved to Riner, enjoying life on the farm with daughter Laura and son-in-law Tupper. He was also able to reconnect with many of his Tully cousins that lived close by. They were able to visit old haunts in W.Va. and reminisce about good times in their youth. He was an avid sports fan and faithful to his Washington teams. After years of unwavering support, he was able to watch his favorites, the Washington Capitals, win the Stanley Cup with family in 2018.
As Karen became more debilitated with dementia, John stayed by her side faithfully and gave her love every day until her last in January of 2020. His last few years he was able to travel, making frequent trips to Vancouver, British Columbia to enjoy hockey games with son John and daughter-in-law Caroline. He enjoyed flights, cruises, and road trips with family, seeing and experiencing all that life could offer each day. He had expressed to his daughter, Laura, late in life, that he had visited 45 US states and wanted to see the last five. In October 2023, the two embarked on a successful journey, visiting Colorado, Wyoming, both Dakotas, and Montana. He was also able to visit Kristin, Chris, and his Arizona grandchildren. John lived his life by seizing every day, by seeing the best in every person, exuding love and positivity at every opportunity. He was a living example of Karma, John Howard Absalom III loved all, and all loved him. We mourn his passing, but we take what he has taught us. This is the mark of a great human being. Aloha, John…
The Celebration of Life will be on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. (desserts and fellowship to follow) at Wilde Lake Interfaith Center, Room #4, 10431 Twin Rivers Rd, Columbia, MD 21044.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Page Robbins Adult Daycare or the charity of your choice.
The Absalom family is in the care of Mullins Funeral Home & Crematory in Radford.
