Obituary for Douglas Lee Trettien
Douglas Lee Trettien died on January 10, 2023 at his home in Sykesville, Maryland.
The first of three identical triplets, Doug was born on June 26, 1950 in Appleton, Wisconsin to Harry and Naomi Trettien. After an idyllic childhood on the lakes and farmland of the midwest, Doug moved to south Florida, where he graduated from Boca Raton High School before attending Marymount College and Florida Atlantic University.
As a lover of golf and a gifted designer, Doug’s dream as a young man was to design golf courses. He sought out famed golf course designer Pete Dye, who encouraged him to study landscape architecture at the University of Florida, where he earned a degree in 1976. Throughout his career as a landscape architect and land planner in Florida and Maryland, Doug designed and built countless spaces where people continue to live, work and enjoy. He later started a company that allowed him to create putting greens that were challenging but accessible to golfers and non-golfers alike.
Doug was inquisitive and observant, traits he valued in others. A meteorite – found in a field in Tigerton, Wisconsin in 1961 – fomented a lifelong interest in the heavens and observing the stars. He checked the temperature, barometric pressure, and phase of the lunar cycle every day and never missed the rising of a harvest moon.
In 2009, a battle with viral encephalitis left Doug in a coma with little chance of survival. Amazingly, he not only recovered but thrived, developing new interests. Determined to get better at jokes, he bought The Big Book of Jokes and assiduously researched the form. Doug also experimented with watercolor painting and charcoal drawing, but remained drawn to bold motifs and sharp lines that were reminiscent of the sketches and technical drawings he had long drafted by hand, drawing inspiration from Art Deco and Expressionism, comics and graffiti. Among the projects he worked on in retirement were characters and new alphabets, which he used to write the names of his grandchildren Silas and Max. In the last weeks of his life, Doug had grown fond of cooking, especially baking bread, and was reading extensively on Buddhism.
He loved the outdoors and often could be found walking in Piney Run Park, driving through the Maryland countryside, or relaxing in the gazebo near his home. He also enjoyed watching the Florida Gators, the Baltimore Ravens, the Baltimore Orioles, or any golf tournament.
He is preceded in death by his older brother Jay Trettien and his triplet brother Warren Trettien. Doug leaves behind his son Blake Trettien and his family, daughter-in-law Christine Jang and grandson Silas Jang-Trettien; his daughter Whitney Trettien and her family, son-in-law Daniel Johnson and grandson Maxime Trettien-Johnson; his triplet brother Thomas Trettien; and his former wife Phyllis Trettien. Doug was deeply spiritual and believed strongly in the existence of life after life, a belief that was strengthened during his earlier illness. It heartens his surviving family to imagine him reuniting with his brothers Jay and Warren. Together, they finally make the trio needed to play their favorite card game, Sheephead.
Doug’s family will gather at the gazebo next to 7426 Village Road, Sykesville, Maryland, from 1 to 2PM on Saturday, February 11th. They welcome friends and neighbors who wish to join them in remembering Doug. A private memorial for family will follow.
The first of three identical triplets, Doug was born on June 26, 1950 in Appleton, Wisconsin to Harry and Naomi Trettien. After an idyllic childhood on the lakes and farmland of the midwest, Doug moved to south Florida, where he graduated from Boca Raton High School before attending Marymount College and Florida Atlantic University.
As a lover of golf and a gifted designer, Doug’s dream as a young man was to design golf courses. He sought out famed golf course designer Pete Dye, who encouraged him to study landscape architecture at the University of Florida, where he earned a degree in 1976. Throughout his career as a landscape architect and land planner in Florida and Maryland, Doug designed and built countless spaces where people continue to live, work and enjoy. He later started a company that allowed him to create putting greens that were challenging but accessible to golfers and non-golfers alike.
Doug was inquisitive and observant, traits he valued in others. A meteorite – found in a field in Tigerton, Wisconsin in 1961 – fomented a lifelong interest in the heavens and observing the stars. He checked the temperature, barometric pressure, and phase of the lunar cycle every day and never missed the rising of a harvest moon.
In 2009, a battle with viral encephalitis left Doug in a coma with little chance of survival. Amazingly, he not only recovered but thrived, developing new interests. Determined to get better at jokes, he bought The Big Book of Jokes and assiduously researched the form. Doug also experimented with watercolor painting and charcoal drawing, but remained drawn to bold motifs and sharp lines that were reminiscent of the sketches and technical drawings he had long drafted by hand, drawing inspiration from Art Deco and Expressionism, comics and graffiti. Among the projects he worked on in retirement were characters and new alphabets, which he used to write the names of his grandchildren Silas and Max. In the last weeks of his life, Doug had grown fond of cooking, especially baking bread, and was reading extensively on Buddhism.
He loved the outdoors and often could be found walking in Piney Run Park, driving through the Maryland countryside, or relaxing in the gazebo near his home. He also enjoyed watching the Florida Gators, the Baltimore Ravens, the Baltimore Orioles, or any golf tournament.
He is preceded in death by his older brother Jay Trettien and his triplet brother Warren Trettien. Doug leaves behind his son Blake Trettien and his family, daughter-in-law Christine Jang and grandson Silas Jang-Trettien; his daughter Whitney Trettien and her family, son-in-law Daniel Johnson and grandson Maxime Trettien-Johnson; his triplet brother Thomas Trettien; and his former wife Phyllis Trettien. Doug was deeply spiritual and believed strongly in the existence of life after life, a belief that was strengthened during his earlier illness. It heartens his surviving family to imagine him reuniting with his brothers Jay and Warren. Together, they finally make the trio needed to play their favorite card game, Sheephead.
Doug’s family will gather at the gazebo next to 7426 Village Road, Sykesville, Maryland, from 1 to 2PM on Saturday, February 11th. They welcome friends and neighbors who wish to join them in remembering Doug. A private memorial for family will follow.