Daniel Lester Boesz

May 21, 1943 – November 6, 2025

Daniel Boesz passed away unexpectedly on November 6, 2025 at his home in Scientists’ Cliffs in Port Republic, MD at the age of 82.

Dan was born in Bridgeton, NJ to Frederick Arthur Boesz and Leona Shimp Boesz. He was the middle child of the family, survived by his younger brother Arthur and predeceased by his older brother Robert. Dan grew up working on a dairy farm milking cows, planting crops and harvesting hay until he left for college at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ. At the farm and later during his years at Rutgers, Dan learned many lessons that served him for the rest of his life including the value of hard work, the importance of a good education, a respect for the opinions of others, a love of reading and the desire to learn something new every day.

Dan met the love of his life, Christine (Tina) Clark while they were students. They were married on June 26, 1965, shortly after Dan graduated from Rutgers. He then served in the United States Air Force as a flight instructor during the Vietnam War years. Dan continued his military service in the Air Force Reserve while employed as a commercial pilot, first for Eastern Airlines, and later as a captain for United Airlines. He was called up for active duty during Operation Desert Storm where he was a squadron leader flying supplies and personnel through the combat zones of the Middle East. He retired from the Air Force with the rank of colonel, remembered fondly as the “old man” by the men he commanded.

Dan and Tina had a second home in Kauai for many years which they purchased with four other friends. Some of his happiest times were the weeks, then months, spent in Kauai where he, Tina and his friends, a group of fellow snowbirds and island year rounders, shared a love of Kauai’s magnificent mountains and beaches, its rich culture and its aloha spirit. Dan embraced it all, from his vast collection of custom-made Hawaiian shirts, to his eagerness to share the island’s many ancient legends and his admiration for the Hawaiian people.

Dan surrounded himself with circles of friends which he called his hui, the Hawaiian word for a community of those who are tied together in friendship and support for one another. Dan had several huis including his many dear friends in Maryland and Kauai. He also adored the families of his two God children, Kelly Doda of St. Helena, CA and her husband Allen and daughter Josie, and Chester Yue of Tampa, FL and his wife Lydia and daughters Christine and Lynna. To be a member of one of Dan’s huis was, in his eyes, to be someone who could do no wrong and for whom he could never do enough.

Dan and Tina had a nearly insatiable desire to travel and see the world. Together they explored the Arctic and Antarctic regions, Europe, Africa, China and Australia. He especially loved cruising and adventure travel, and continued to travel widely after Tina’s death in 2013.

Back in Maryland, Dan was a founding member and longtime supporter of the American Chestnut Land Trust (ACLT) where he also served on one of its first board of directors. He also served ACLT as a dedicated, hard-working volunteer for over thirty-five years. He hiked the trails in the land trust nearly every day and encouraged anyone he encountered along the way to join and get involved in ACLT.

Dan will be sorely missed by the hundreds of people whose lives he touched who will remember his infectious smiles, boundless energy and generous spirit.

Donations in Dan’s memory may be made to the American Chestnut Land Trust (ACLT) and St. Jude’s Hospital.