NOTICE: 

Jay Votel died peacefully at his home in the early morning of June 25, 2008.  He was 52.

Please keep Nancy and his family in your thoughts and prayers.  (If you would like Nancy Votel's home address, please write to Karen, webmaster, at penguins51@aol.com)

His obituary from The Washington Times is reproduced below.  Jay requested memorial donations be made to S.O.M.E.  (So Others Might Eat). 

In his own words:  Jay's Musical Autobiography

See also NOTE below about Jay's bands and volunteer work with folk music organizations.

Jerome Joseph "Jay" Votel, an editor for The Washington Times and folk-rock musician, died Wednesday at his home in Sterling, Va., after a battle with cancer. He was 52.

Friends and colleagues said Mr. Votel's two passions were news and music as he spent most of his life writing, reporting and editing and playing instruments solo and in bands.

"He was as diligent and caring a colleague as I ever met in my life, and he will be sorely missed," said The Times' Executive Editor John Solomon.

Mr. Votel spent nearly four decades in the news business, earning his first byline at 14 while covering his high school basketball team for the Northern Virginia Daily in Strasburg, Va.

After he graduated from college, Mr. Votel worked for newspapers in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and the District.

He worked at the Capital-Gazette newspaper in Annapolis and the Kent County News in Chestertown, Md., before coming to The Times more than seven years ago.

"He had a real interest in newspapers," said Tom Marquardt the Capital-Gazette's editor and publisher. "As they say, he had ink in his blood."

Mr. Votel's interest in music dated back to his teens, when he sang and played guitar in folk Masses at a church in his hometown of Winchester, Va., said his mother, Jo Votel-McFarlane.

In the summers between semesters at Shepherd State Teachers College, now Shepherd University, he entertained patrons of the Big Meadow Lodge and other spots along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah, Va., with his folk-singing and guitar.

Mr. Votel played with several bands during and after college, and in the 1980s he moved to the Eastern Shore, where he learned to play the mandolin and founded the bluegrass band Hit 'n' Miss.

Jay's last band, Allegheny Uprising, started in the 1990s as a trio with husband and wife Betty Jo Rockwell and Scott Rockwell and later included Barry Bryan.

The Rockwells left the group to focus on work as a duo, but Mr. Votel and Mr. Bryan continued playing, and this year added two new members, Nick Kinney and Melissa Wright.

Mr. Votel's wife, Nancy, said she and her husband enjoyed traveling and camping. They had camped in Yosemite and Yellowstone national parks and in Nova Scotia, Canada. They also frequently visited folk-music festivals around the country and took road trips.

Mrs. Votel said one of his most salient traits was his devotion to friends.

"The friends he made, he kept for a long time," she said. "And his friends were loyal to him, too."

Those friends said Mr. Votel was a great newsman, musician and person.

"Best of all, he was a great listener and had a clear view of the world," said Maria Stainer, The Times' assistant managing editor for continuous news. "Whether he was polishing a phrase in a story, mentoring a freelance writer, or tuning up a mandolin, Jay had it under control."

An excerpt from a March entry on Mr. Votel's blog explained his philosophy on music and life.

"[Music] is very temporal, a pretty good metaphor for life," he wrote. "Nothing gold can stay, as the poet said, and the music is something to enjoy while it is there."

Mr. Votel is survived by his wife and two daughters from a previous marriage, Janelle Tinsman of Columbia, S.C., and Jacqueline Votel of Boonsboro, Md.

See messages of remembrance on The Washington Times site:

The Washington Times remembers Jay Votel

Additional NOTE:

In addition to the things mentioned above, Jay was very involved with the local Washington / Virginia / Maryland / West Virginia folk music scene as a loyal volunteer.  He recently resigned his position as a member of the Board for Focus Music, a non-profit that presents folk and acoustic music concerts in the Washington, DC area.  Additionally, Jay, along with wife Nancy, spent many years on the World Folk Music Association's concert committee, helping plan and implement their annual benefit concerts.  His bigger role was as editor of the WFMA newsletter, Folk News, and as a reviewer of many newly-released folk music CDs by local and national artists.  Both organizations will sorely miss his talents and his friendship.

In recent years, he performed with not only Allegheny Uprising (this web site), but also formed a group called Riff Raff Band, that performed alt-country, progressive country, rock music.

June 9, 2008

Hi friends, fans and family: Nancy and I are grateful for all the well-wishes, cards, prayers and positive thoughts you've sent us. You sincerely have touched our hearts.

Much has happened rather quickly. All of this caught us by surprise.

Back in February, a long-time friend I hadn't seen in months commented about how much weight I had lost. I had been trying to cut down, plus I had oral surgery in January that had restricted my diet. My appetite never really came back. A week or so later, a colleague at the office also commented on my weight. I had read that loss of appetite and weight loss were two of the symptoms of pancreatic cancer, and so decided to schedule a physical with my doctor and to get a referral for a colonoscopy and endoscopy check-up. I have had three deaths in the family due to this kind of cancer.

At my physical, the doctor said my blood tests showed abnormalities of the liver. The gave me the referrals I wanted and ordered more tests. I had a CT scan on April 4 which detected a mass in my liver as well as cirrhosis. I had been a heavy drinker and smoker, but quit alcohol almost 12 years ago and quit cigarettes 7 years ago.

After my endoscopy, I pretty much lost my voice entirely. It has come back a little, but it is far from singing.

I had some internal bleeding from the endoscopy that put me back in the hospital the third week of April. There were more tests. On April 24, the doctor gave us the news: It's hepatocellular carcinoma, liver cancer that has spread to my lungs.

I have been on the medication Nexavar since then. It is supposed to stop the growth of my tumors. At the moment, because there also is cancer in my lungs and apparently my lymph system, the medication is the only treatment recommended. I am told that three years ago, the medication didn't even exist, so I am grateful for every small miracle, that there is some treatment available. The doctors say a liver transplant is not possible at this time for me because the cancer has spread. We also got a second concurring opinion about the treatment and options from a specialist at Georgetown Hospital's Lombardi Cancer Center last week.

So for now, it is weekly blood tests and visits to the doctor. We'll keep you informed here.

Hopefully, my voice will return and I'll regain enough strength to sing and play out again soon. Melissa has received several scholarships to attend Berklee School of  Music in Boston and we are so proud of her and grateful for the months we had her in the band. Nick says he hopes to start some bluegrass jams out at St. James School on the Eastern Shore, where he will start teaching in the fall. So it'll be Barry and me if we ever get back to picking.

Thanks to all of you for every kindness. Keep thinking positively.

All the best,
-- Jay