Ronald H. "Ron" Hoffman

Ronald Harold Hoffman was born December 28, 1932 in Forbes, North Dakota to Harold and Stella Hoffman. Due to the Great Depression, his family moved numerous times around the area following whatever work could be found, eventually working their way through Montana before finally settling in southern Idaho. The family sharecropped at several farms in the Boise valley, and Ron attended various local schools while also being a full-time helper on the farm. Ron graduated from Meridian High School in 1952. After high school, Ron went to work for Caterpillar in Boise as a mechanic. He later became an over-the-road truck driver back when the trucks were much less comfortable than they are today. He often scoffed at modern truckers who “Can't EVEN shift a 5 x 4 transmission”. Ron married Sharon Stone in 1955; they had three daughters, Carolyn, Marsha, and Gerri. He owned and operated a Chevron Service Station in Boise for many years, and later worked as a salesman in various fields. In 1971 Ron moved the family to northern Idaho where they settled in at their last home in Careywood. Ron found a job working at the Cocolalla Lumber Company, and then worked as a school bus mechanic, truck driver, and gas station attendant. He finished his career working at the Careywood Post Office as Postmaster where the Hoffman family had operated the contract Post Office station since the 1970's. Ron had a hat that read “Born to Fish, Forced to Work”, this pretty well summed up his outlook on life. Ron's family was very important to him, he dearly loved family dinners and dining out, the more the merrier. After retiring, he enjoyed going to town or restaurants often, we joked that if his little pickup ever stopped long enough to cool down the engine would crack. Ron was preceded in death by his parents, Harold and Stella Hoffman, his wife of 58 years, Sharon Hoffman, his daughter Marsha MacMillan, and grandson Howard Bailey. He is survived by his sisters, Marilyn (Lewis) Shreffler of Careywood and Janet (Delbert) Marcum of Meridian, daughters Carolyn (Joe) Smith of Careywood and Gerri (Bob) Schoonderwoerd of Caldwell, also four grandchildren, Joseph (Amy) Bailey, Candice (James) Sumner, Sarah (Rulon) Roundy, Michelle (Drew) Nelson, and six great-grandchildren.