Obituary: John Alan Hoogenboom
July 14, 1948 – September 20, 2024
October 1, 2024 John Alan Hoogenboom moved on from this earth surrounded by the love of his family on September 20, 2024 at Central Vermont Medical Center. He was born in Jamaica Queens, New York, on July 14, 1948 to parents, Aart and Edna Hoogenboom.
John Hoogenboom, 1948 - 2024
John grew up in Cheshire, Connecticut, where he spent his childhood exploring nature and developing a great love for the turtles he would bring home in his pockets. He attended Southern Connecticut State University where he majored in Biology and went on to earn his masters in Zoology. Upon walking into a class on meteorology, in his junior year, he was taken by the beauty of a young woman with strawberry blond hair who he sat next to for the lecture and who he would “sit next to” for the next 55 years. John and Ruth married July 1, 1972 and lived in Redding, Connecticut. As a young couple, they taught middle and high school. They traveled during the summers, often camping at national parks in the U.S. and Canada – destinations that would become a tradition to visit as a family.
After 10 years of teaching biology, John entered the insurance business in 1980. Within his first year, he qualified for the National Sales Achievement Award, a testament to his dedication. He earned numerous national recognitions throughout his four decade plus career in the financial services industry, retiring after a long and successful career.
In 1983, John fulfilled his childhood dream of moving to Vermont where he and Ruth raised their three children and where he became what many affectionately refer to as “The Mayor of Moretown.” John served on the Moretown Selectboard as chairman or vice chairman for 37 years.
John’s dedication to his community and the people in it, extended beyond the selectboard, as he served on various committees throughout Moretown and the Mad River Valley. He took the most pride in being the Incident Commander after Tropical Storm Irene. In 2018, John’s contributions were recognized by the governor at Morefest, and in 2024 he received the Community Service Award from the Secretary of State during Town Meeting Day.
John was also a dedicated member of the Waterbury Rotary Club for over 30 years, president of the $200 Club, which provided essential funding for Central Vermont Medical Center, and a member of the Friends of the Horticulture Farm at UVM and the Hardy Plant Club. He further pursued his passion for nature by graduating from the Vermont Master Naturalist Program for the Mad River Valley.
John’s greatest love was his family. He was a dedicated father and loved his children in the kindest most pure way, teaching them how to love unconditionally. His happiest moments in life were when he had all of his children together. John was able to multiply the joy of parenthood in 2020 when he became Opa, passing on the same wholehearted love he gave to his children to his grandchildren.
John was a botanist at heart. His love for trees, flowers, ferns and the natural world was a part of his being and anyone close to John was given the gift of learning how to love these things with their whole self. His other loves included Christmastime and snow, turtles, dogs and sweets. He was an avid weather tracker, recording data over 40 years and was relied upon to accurately forecast for friends and family. Above all, he is known for his genuine kindness and unwavering honesty which he gave to everyone who came into his presence.
In 2019, John was diagnosed with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, a chronic lung disease that causes scarring of the lung tissue and has no cure. John bravely faced the diagnosis, starting up an exercise routine at age 71 and electing to partake in an experimental drug trial program at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. John never gave up his personal mission as he attended Rotary and selectboard meetings on Zoom. How he battled IPF but found joy with family – especially his two grandsons – and his community was amazing.
John is survived by his beloved wife Ruth; his siblings Aart Hoogenboom and Nancy Beatty; his three children John, Ann and Jeffrey; son-in-law PJ Telep and his two grandsons, Anders and Henrik Telep, along with many nieces and nephews whom he adored.
A celebration in honor of John’s life takes place on Oct. 17, from 3 to 6 p.m. at Bliss Ridge Farm. In true Moretown fashion, the service will be a potluck dinner. The family invites friends and loved ones of John’s to bring a small offering from their garden to the service (flowers, a few sprigs from a conifer, tree branches, grasses, etc.) so that John can see the gardens of all who he loved in one place. Donations can be made to the Heart Lung and Blood Institute to support critical research for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis.