Earl Goecke

Earl Goecke, longtime rural State Center resident and farmer, died Tuesday, March 16th, at the Iowa River Hospice House. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 20th, at the Mitchell Family Funeral Home. Visitation will be held from 5-7:00 p.m. on Friday. For condolences, please visit www.mitchellfh.com. The Mitchell Family Funeral Home is caring for Earl and his family. Ph 641-844-1234. Born on July 5th, 1914, on the home place in Marshall County, Iowa, Earl was the son of E.F. and Minnie E. (Hertel) Goecke. He attended school in Marietta Township #5 School and then LaMoille and Clemons. On Christmas Day of 1935, he was united in marriage to Helen Tigges at the home of Rev. Bishop of the Minerva Wesley Chapel. They made their home northeast of State Center for 72 years where Earl was a farmer and owner-operator of Jay-Kee Trailer Manufacturing. Always working with a creative mind, he and son Ron were patent holders of a trailer hitch patent as well. Earl liked to travel the country roads in his black truck watching the trains west of LaMoille, going to tractor pulls with Ron and his grandsons, doing tractor restoration (and a 1925 model T truck) and traveling to trailer shows. Mr. Goecke was a member of the Minerva Wesley Chapel, Mid-Iowa Antique Power Association, State Center School Board and State Center Commerce Club. Left to cherish his memory are Helen, his loving wife of 74 years, son Ron (Mary) of rural State Center, daughter Karen (Alan) Hilleman of Marshalltown, grandchildren: Deanna (Randy) Dickinson of Curtice, Ohio, Valerie (Andre) Authier of Pleasant Hill, Iowa, Chad (Kara) Goecke of Marshalltown, Kirk (Angela) Hilleman of State Center and Kristine (Scott) Clarke of West Des Moines, 11 great-grandchildren, his sister Fran Holm of Marshalltown and sister-in-law Mary Goecke of Marshalltown as well as many nieces and nephews. In death, Earl was rejoined with his parents, son Steven (1961), daughter Ellen (1988), great-granddaughter Promise Joy Authier, brothers Harold and Louis Bud, and sisters Edna Hibbs, Bernice Callan and Mildred Douds.