John Wolfgang Goebel

John Wolfgang Goebel

John Wolfgang Goebel was born Aug. 20, 1924, near Townsend, Mont., to homesteaders Nicholas and Frieda (Wolff) Goebel. After his mother died when John was just 2 years old, he was taken in by Mrs. Carroll, a registered nurse who cared for others in her home since Townsend did not have a hospital, while his father ran the farm for the Sisters of Charity orphan's home in Helena. He was raised with siblings Frank Carroll and Kathryn (Robert) Miller, formerly of Helena.

While in high school, next door to Mrs. Carroll's home, his FFA project was poultry, the only livestock activity permitted within the city limits. When the industrial arts teacher was drafted during World War II, John was asked to "finish" his senior year as the shop teacher.

Upon high school graduation, John enlisted in the U.S. Navy, and went to the South Pacific with the Seabees, helping build breakwaters and landing strips, spending time in the Marshall Islands and Guam.

Following World War II, John worked road construction, building roads near Pipestone and Wolf Creek, while attending Montana State University in Bozeman. Originally majoring in civil engineering, he eventually graduated in 1951 with a B.S. degree in industrial arts. He taught in Shelby for two years, then was asked to"fill in" for a professor on sabbatical at Northern Montana College. He then spent the next 37-plus years teaching at Northern. In 1956, he completed his M.A. in industrial education at Northern Colorado University in Greely. In 1958, he was the Montana delegate to the Third National Conference on Traffic Safety Education; he later completed his education specialist degree in traffic safety education at Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg. He was instrumental in starting the driver education teacher training programs for the state of Montana at Northern. He offered the first motorcycle safety course at Northern in 1974. Later, after attending workshops at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, he brought back ideas for emergency driver education, "did what it took‚" for a similar program for Montana, which is still functioning today in Lewistown.

His main advice to all his students: Find your passion, something you enjoy, something you are good at, something that is honorable, and give back to the community. If you wake up in the morning and hate what you are doing, you are not doing the right thing.

While teaching an adult education class in leather tooling, he met Inga Hentschel. They married in 1955, raising three children. Nick (Jana Brough) followed his father's passion for making automobiles look nice, working for Hammer'n Hank‚ Auto Body. Jim (JoAnne Formanack) followed his father's passion for engineering, eventually becoming a licensed surveyor. Carolyn "Cari" (Jerry Frahm) also completed degrees in engineering, several in education, taught driver's ed, designed roads and did traffic safety engineering for the Montana Department of Transportation and eventually finished her M.S. in health and safety at St. Cloud State, with an assistantship at the Minnesota Traffic Safety Center, following many of her father's footsteps. She also followed her father's passion for raising chickens and teaching, including adjunct for five years at Northern.

John joined the Knights of Columbus while a college student at Bozeman; he progressed through the ranks, serving as Grand Knight and Faithful Navigator for the 4th degree. For many years, he was Newman Club advisor at Northern; he also was advisor for the Industrial Arts Club, arranging for their travel to the World's Fair in Spokane, Wash.

When his sons were old enough to join Scouts, he became Scoutmaster for St. Jude's Boy Scout Troop 433, which he continued well past the time his son, Jim, earned Eagle Scout. John was Scoutmaster for the Montana delegation to National Jamborees at Farragut, Idaho, and later to Morraine State Park in Pennsylvania.

For several years, John helped in training emergency medical technicians. He also served on the Hill County Park Board, gave tours at Havre Beneath the Streets, and managed to keep active in St. Jude's Parish, serving as lay lector and ecumenical minister. John and Inga traveled to Germany and Florida to meet his mother's siblings, to Hawaii 50 years after World War II and to their cabin in Beaver Creek Park, and they made numerous Amtrak trips to Minnesota, when Cari and Jerry ran a dairy farm, with a much-more modern barn than the kind his father milked cows in for the orphan's home.

Due to John's declining health over the past decade, Jerry and Cari relocated back to Montana to help care for him. This made his trips to see the chickens and cows much closer and often.

John died at his home April 17, 2013, with Inga and Nick at his side, in the house he helped build and lived in since 1956.

John was preceded in death by his mother in 1926; and his father in 1963.

He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Inga; three children and their spouses; and three grandchildren; plus his wife's siblings and families: Fred (Ginny) Hentschel of Spokane, Sylvia (Gary) Funk of Missoula, and Ray (Julie) Hentschel of Havre; and aunt, Ilse Wagner, and her family.

Memorials may be made to Hill County Park Board or St. Jude‚

His prayer vigil service will be 7 p.m. Sunday, April 21, 2013, with his funeral Mass 1 p.m. Monday, April 22, 2013, all at the St. Jude Thaddeus Catholic Church with Father Daniel Wathen officiating. Burial with full military honors will follow at Highland Cemetery. A fellowship luncheon will be held at the Parish Center immediately after the graveside service.

Memorials may be made to Hill County Park Board or St. Jude Thaddeus. Services and arrangements have been entrusted to Holland & Bonine Funeral Home.