John "Jack" Edward Goeders

John Edward Goeders, or Jack as he was more affectionately known, left this earth to be with his heavenly father on April 3, 2021, after a brief but extremely courageous battle with melanoma.

He was born on July 15, 1946 to Eugene “Bud” Goeders and Elizabeth “Betty” (Kelly) Goeders in Emmetsburg, Iowa. Shortly thereafter, they moved to Manson. He was the oldest of 5 kids (Randy, Kathy, Karen & Todd). He graduated from Manson High School in 1964 and went on to further his education at Iowa Central Community College and the University of South Dakota. It was during those years he met the love of his life Pamela Stow. They were married June 20, 1969 in Humboldt. They were blessed with 3 children Marc, Amy & Greg or Cha-Cha, Skeeta & Billy as he more affectionately called them.

He was proud to say he worked at Foley Clothing for many years. He went on to become part owner of Fitzpatrick’s Department Store, and more recently as a representative with Royal Alliance Insurance. He loved meeting and talking to people and always remembered his favorite clients with a birthday card on their special day.

His faith played a very important role in his life, a value he instilled in his children as well. He was active in the St. Thomas Catholic Church as a lector, eucharistic minister and CCD teacher over the years.

A cowboy at heart, he loved watching Westerns on television, much to the dismay of his family. He also loved the movie Christmas Vacation and knew most every line by heart.

As an avid outdoorsman and conservationist, he loved to fish and hunt. He always taught his kids to catch and release. It wasn’t until later in life they realized this was partially due to the fact that he didn’t really like to clean fish all that much. His hunting claim to fame came when he bagged 3 pheasant with one shot at Kalsow Prairie. A feat witnessed by his kids.

One of his favorite weekly activities was to leave work early and take his beloved dog Nisha to the Wiegert farmstead for their frequent hikes.

He loved sports and never missed an opportunity to cheer on the Denver Broncos or Minnesota Twins. But everyone knew his heart belonged to the Iowa State Cyclones. As the founding member of the infamous “C4 Club” he took great joy in planning tailgate parties before, during and after Iowa State Football games. To this day his family and fellow tailgaters can’t help but think of him and crack a smile when they hear any song

from the Jock Jams soundtrack. He recently reminisced that some of the best times of his life were spent planning, executing and then recovering from those tailgate parties.

He adored his grandkids Noah, Ben, Olivia, George & James dearly, and some of their most cherished memories of him usually involved a fishing pole and a cooler of snacks. He always greeted his daughters-in-law, Dawn & Mandy, with a huge hug and a sweet compliment.

He loved to dance and was known to put on his favorite Rod Stewart CD, and he and Pam would dance around the kitchen song after song.

As a tribute to Jack, his family asks that sometime soon you take a Friday afternoon off work and go fishing, explore a trail somewhere or simply take a drive through the country and enjoy all that God has created around you. And when you do, remember Jack and smile...and don’t forget to pack a cooler.

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