Andrew Chalkley Kittler, 78, passed away peacefully on May 25, 2024 at home in Tracys Landing, Maryland. Born on October 24, 1945 in Richmond, Virginia, he was the son of Fred Warren Kittler Sr. and Cornelia Chalkley Kittler.
Since his father was a career Naval officer, Andy and his family moved regularly during his childhood, living successively in Alexandria, Va.; Port Washington, N.Y.; Virginia Beach, Va.; Esher, Surrey, England, and Washington, D.C. However, his second home throughout his life was Ware Neck, Virginia, home since the 1930s to his grandparents and later his parents.

Andy attended the Everett School in Virginia Beach; Gloucester Day School in Gloucester, Va.; Milbourne Lodge School in Esher, England, and St. Albans School in Washington, D.C., where he graduated as class valedictorian in 1963. He received a B.A. cum laude in mathematics from Harvard in 1967 and an M.A. from the University of Washington in Seattle in 1969. He attended Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I. and was commissioned as a Naval officer. He was a member of the Underwater Demolition Teams (UDT) during the Vietnam War. After being honorably discharged from the Navy in 1973, he attended UVA Law School, receiving his Juris Doctor in 1978. He worked in the Office of Chief Counsel at the IRS in Washington, D.C., until his retirement in 1995.

He met his future wife, Linda Bartley, in 1971 in Gloucester, and they married in 1981 at her father’s house in Cambridge, Md. They made their first home in Silver Spring, Md., and in 1983 they moved to a farmhouse in Tracys Landing, where they raised their sons, James and Robert. He and his wife cared about animals and at various times kept horses, dogs, and many beloved cats. He took early retirement to spend more time with his family both in Maryland and in Ware Neck, where his parents welcomed both his helpful presence and precious time with their grandsons.

Andy was thoughtful, analytical, imaginative, competitive, and attracted to challenges, both physical and mental. He was deeply knowledgeable about astronomy, weather, geography, history, and everything mathematical. He loved music, and he played both classical and electric guitar. His expertise with crossword puzzles was astounding. In college and later, he ran and rowed competitively. His love of sailing and boats throughout his life led him to many pursuits and adventures, including racing a Penguin dinghy on the Potomac River as a teenager. He crewed on a Flying Dutchman in the 1972 U.S. Olympic Trials, where he and his skipper placed second. He was on the race committee for the Governor’s Cup at Ware River Yacht Club and at West River Sailing Club in Galesville, Md. He was once caught sailing alone in a hurricane on the lower Chesapeake, and his boat lost its mast, an event he survived without aid and loved to recount. Boating more peacefully on the Ware River and the Mobjack Bay, alone or with others, made him deeply happy.
Introverted by nature, Andy was warmhearted, kind, and generous. He made many devoted friends throughout his life, a group of whom gathered regularly for years, up until 2023, for “Boys’ Weekend,” with Ware Neck as their favorite destination. His nephews and a niece fondly remember being treated in Ware Neck to boat rides, fireworks, and wonderfully generous “Uncle Andy as Santa Claus” activities at Christmas. His sons were the pride and joy of his life.
Andy is greatly missed by his whole family: his wife, Lindy; sons, James and Robert; sister, Cornelia; brother, Fred, their spouses and children, and by all the many dear friends he made throughout his life.

There will be a celebration of Andy’s life at a later date. Contributions in Andy’s name may be made to the Mobjack Rowing Association or to the charity of your choice.