F. Allen Gotzens, 81

ADAMS, Mass. — F. Allen Gotzens, 81, formerly of Adams, Mass., son of the late Richard “Dick” Gotzens and Cyrella (Bacon) Gotzens, who passed on this same date in 1984, passed away on Tuesday, December 26, 2017, at the Community Living Center in Lake City, Fla., after a long illness. 

Allen is a 1954 graduate of the former Adams Memorial High School. Upon graduation, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and went to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, for his training as a heavy equipment operator. Allen served mainly in several countries overseas doing a job he loved. He retired in 1978 as a Chief Warrant Officer after serving 24 years, returning to his home in Alexandria, Va. He became an instructor at the Diesel Institute of America in Maryland for several years before moving to Florida, where he worked in security for Sears and Mount Sinai Hospital.

Allen is survived by his former wife Carolyn (Carlo) of Virginia (formerly of Pittsfield, Mass.) and two daughters; Teresa DeVault (Jason) and their daughters Hannah and Kendra of Texas and Mary Jane Hilleary (Doug) and their children Samantha Gunnells of Englewood, Colo., and Jessica Lomax of Harrisonburg, Va. He is also survived by one brother, Richard “Jack” Gotzens (Rosella) of Albuquerque, N.M., and two sisters, Leda (Demastrie) Giroux of Adams, Mass., and Ruth King (Pat) of North Adams, Mass., as well as several cousins, nieces and nephews.

Funeral notice: After cremation, Allen chose to be buried in the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida, with full military honors at a later date.