Obituaries

Major John C. Hoogerwerff, 81

January 08, 2019

Major John C. Hoogerwerff passed away Tuesday, January 8th in Lancaster, PA. He was born November 6, 1937 in Philadelphia PA to the late Wilhelmus and Charlotte Hoogerwerff. He left home when he was 16 years old to join the US Marine Corps. He remained in the Marine Corps for more than 30 years retiring with the rank of Major.
His career brought him to such exotic places as Okinawa, Japan, Hawaii, Vietnam, Wake Island, Guam, The Philippines, Aleutian Islands, The Azores, Egypt, Somalia, Cuba, Hong Kong, China, Vancouver BC, and Vieques, Puerto Rico.
His stateside duties brought him to South Carolina, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington DC, California, Tennessee and Florida.
He received a Certificate of Commendation for his service during the funeral of John F. Kennedy, received an inaugural gold medal for his participation in the inauguration of Richard Nixon, received the Bronze Star with valor for service in Vietnam and received the Navy/Marine Corps Achievement Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal while assigned to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.
John remained in California after his retirement and was the owner of an antiques and wine business. He returned to working life in Veterans Benefits in Orange County California.
He moved to Strasburg in1996 as the Director of Veterans Benefits for Lancaster County. He was a long standing member of the Strasburg Borough Republican Committee.
John enjoyed woodworking, collecting antique tools and early Marine Corps memorabilia. John was preceded in death by his son, John Corbit “Corrie” in 1986, and his wife, Florence in October 2018. John is survived by his nephew Tommy (Sharon) Pardue, niece Terry (Don) Yates, nephew Tim (Laura) King, and niece Mary (Tracy) Vargo.
Visitation will be held from 3-4:30PM on Sunday, January 13, 2019 with a Funeral Service to follow at 4:30PM at the Charles F. Snyder Jr. Funeral Home & Crematory, 3110 Lititz Pike, Lititz, PA. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Foundation, PO Box 781352, Philadelphia, PA 19178-1352. Burial will be at Arlington National Cemetery.

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Condolences to the Family

April 01, 2019

Semper Fi Major Hoogerwerff, thank you for your service and courage to our great nation.

Brian Connelly

January 13, 2019

My deepest sympathy to John’s family.  John was a colleague and friend of mine.  I hired John as the Lancaster County Director of Veterans’ Affairs.  He was perfect for this job.  He did everything possible to assist veterans and their families with veterans’ benefits.  His vast knowledge of military affairs made him the perfect person for this job.  I am so thankful that John was part of my life.  He was one special guy.  RIP, John.

Visitation
Sunday, January 13, 2019
3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
Charles F. Snyder Funeral Home & Crematory
3110 Lititz Pike
Lititz, PA 17543
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Services
Sunday, January 13, 2019
4:30 PM
Charles F. Snyder Funeral Home & Crematory
3110 Lititz Pike
Lititz, PA 17543
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