Jeffrey Wragg Obituary

Jeffrey L. Wragg CHARLESTON - I'll send you some orbit diagrams I made of three suns with different masses-- -typical Jeff Wragg family text JEFFREY L. WRAGG, of Charleston, SC, --- known also as Juff, dw, Long Fei (flying dragon), and Wrezz Wragg (and perhaps less affectionately by other names to which we are either not privy or too polite to mention), loving husband, brothering brother, doctor of physics, skydiver, and passionate teacher, passed away on Feb. 11, 2025 (or Feb. 12, China Standard Time; Jeff was nothing if not leaps and bounds ahead of us) , in Kunming, China, a country that, like this one, was every bit his home. Born on May 23, 1952 in Kalamazoo, MI to Richard Emerson Wragg and Marolyn Adell Ewing Wragg, who "gifted" him with one older and three younger siblings, he grew up in Galesburg and St. Joseph, MI, then served primarily at Mountain Home Air Force Base, ID, from 1971 to 1975. During this time, he became a skydiver, taking his first jump in 1973 and eventually completing more than 2,400 jumps, both competitively (winning two national championships) and recreationally. One of his jumps, it must be reported, was done naked. We are unclear what, if any, awards that garnered him. Participation counts! He was a self-described "experimentalist by training and inclination," and we have evidence of this from an early age, when he built his first and, to our knowledge, only electric chair, which he tried out on his younger brother. The chair delivered a shock, but the experiment overall was deemed a failure. He attended Michigan Technological University, North Idaho College, and the University of Idaho (assuring us that he only ever voluntarily left these institutions) before earning a BS from Boise State University, an MS from the University of Maine, and a PhD from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Physics all the way. He spent the bulk of his career in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the College of Charleston, where he privileged teaching over tenure, retiring in 2019 as senior instructor emeritus. His teaching, however, wasn't confined to Charleston. With a group of colleagues, he first visited China in 2005, then returned every year or two thereafter, on vacation and on sabbaticals, to teach classes, give lectures, edit papers, and advise and mentor, always mentor, the students. He taught at Fuling Normal University (now Yangtze Normal University) in Chongqing and between 2014 and 2019 was a visiting lecturer at Fudan University in Shanghai. As time went on, his Chinese students became former students, but they stayed in close contact with Jeff, still seeking his advice-on fellowships, careers, relationships, life-and now introducing him to their children. He was beyond thrilled to be returning to China in January 2025, his first trip back post-Covid. Jeff's extraordinary effectiveness as a teacher would not have been possible had he stopped being a student himself. Wherever he traveled, it was only ever with an open heart and curious mind, immersing himself in the unfamiliar-food, customs, language (he learned enough Mandarin to get by and just enough more to make him a little dangerous). But despite all that can get lost in translation, he managed not only to cultivate friendships wide and far but also to create families among these friends. He was adored-and adopted-by so many. He tried to go to Mars. He would have fit right in there too. He would not be unhappy to have died in China, but he would be vexed that it happened on the front end rather than tail end of his trip, and he would be anguished that he was so far away from his cherished Marie. Jeff is predeceased by his parents and his dear Unk and Ain't Pat. He is survived by many more loved ones than we can name here: foremost, his wife, Marie Fitzwilliam of Charleston; brother, Dixon Wragg (Joan Berler) of Healdsburg, CA; sister, Sheryl Wragg (Cliff Hodge) of Grand Rapids, MI; brother Mark Wragg (Jude Grant) of Grand Rapids, MI; sister, Mary Wragg Luttenton (Chuck Luttenton) of Ada, MI; beloved in-laws, Richie and Jenny Alleyne of Molyneux Plantation, Barbados, where he spent yearly vacations with Marie's family; his extended families in Germany, Barbados, Michigan, and California; his moviegoing and road-tripping friend, Wayne; his many "daughters" in China and their families; his good Charleston neighbors; and Danny and other closely held friends on the rez, who in more ways than they know helped Jeff make good tracks in this life. To honor Jeff's dedication to the College of Charleston, his love of physics, and his passion for teaching, donations may be made online at givecharleston.org/Wragg-Memorial or written out to the Jeffrey L. Wragg Memorial Endowed Scholarship in Physics, College of Charleston Foundation, 66 George St., Charleston, SC 29424. A celebration of life will be held June 30, 2025, 2:00-4:30 p.m., at the College of Charleston, Rita Liddy Hollings Science Center (Auditorium, Room 101), 58 Coming St., Charleston, SC 29401.