SEQUIM — A Sequim-area motorcyclist who died Tuesday of injuries sustained in a Sept. 7 wreck was remembered as a proud and quiet man who was always thoughtful of others, friends of Joseph L. “Joe” Cvitkovich said.
Cvitkovich, 79, ran a red light and was struck by a sport utility vehicle in the intersection of U.S. Highway 101 and Hooker Road, the State Patrol said.
The State Patrol announced early Wednesday that he had died of his injuries at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
“He was a very nice, wonderful man,” said Joe Borden, a member of the Peninsula Outriders, a motorcycle club of mostly retirees that Cvitkovich joined nearly 10 years ago.
“The guys are really going to miss him,” said Chuck Smith, another member of the motorcycle club.
“He was really a fantastic person. . . . Everybody liked him.”
Cvitkovich served in the U.S. Navy and worked at the Port Townsend paper mill until he retired and moved to Carlsborg, Smith said.
He was also a member of the Patriot Guard Riders.
Smith recalled that Cvitkovich would not accept favors and was “very thoughtful of other people.”
Cvitkovich was turning onto the highway from Hooker Road on a 2002 Yamaha XVX11A motorcycle when the wreck occurred at 11:44 a.m. about 3 miles west of Sequim, the State Patrol said.
He was struck in the intersection by a 1997 Geo Tracker driven by Joy A. Newman, the State Patrol said. She was not taken to a hospital, troopers said.
Newman, 37, also of Sequim, was heading eastbound on the highway.
Cvitkovich was wearing a helmet, and Newman was wearing a seat belt.
A life remembrance is being planned for Cvitkovich. A date has not been set.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
