John Goddard

John B. “Jack” Goddard

June 21, 1920 ~ January 8, 2015

National and international events often influence our lives in unexpected ways.  Like many men and women of his generation, Jack was shaped by the Great Depression and World War II.  Born in 1920 to Francis Kelly and Isabelle B. Goddard, he enjoyed a typical childhood riding bikes, playing ball, and learning to play the piano.  Just as he turned 10, however, life changed.  The stock market crash and subsequent depression took the family’s savings.  His father found it hard to work because of chronic asthma so the family struggled.  The painful experiences of those years had an emotional impact on Jack.  He vowed never to feel that kind of insecurity again.

To help support the family, Jack sold morning newspapers on the corner of Washington Boulevard and 25 ^th Street.  In high school he got a job scooping ice cream at Farr’s from 3 p.m. until 10 p.m.at night.  He made money, learned to make sodas and root beer frosties, but often found himself sleepy at school.  Nodding off one afternoon in French class, he was poked in the back with a stylus by the girl sitting behind.  He yelped with surprise and both students were dismissed for the hour.  It was then at 16 he met his future bride, Geraldine W. “Gerry” Goddard.

A bright and serious student, Jack earned a scholarship to the University of Utah where he affiliated with Beta Theta Pi.  He hoped to pursue a career in medicine but his education was cut short by his father’s worsening asthma.  The family needed him home in Ogden to help.

With the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the nation went to War.  Like most young men at the time, he wanted to do his part so enlisted in the Army.  He was sent to Officer’s Candidate School and upon graduation in August, 1943 married his high school sweetheart, Gerry.  They were partners for almost 70 years.

He was assigned to the Third Infantry Division and was deployed to Italy where the soldiers fought their way to Rome.  The division was later redeployed to Southern France where he was injured by machine gun fire near Epinal, France.

After several operations, Jack returned to Ogden and started building homes for returning veterans and their new families.  He soon saw a need for construction financing.  He taught himself accounting and finance and with the help of mentors and a few friends, created Western Mortgage Loan Corporation and later United Savings Bank, Western Real Estate, and Terra Firma Construction.  Jack loved to work and thrived on challenges.  He surrounded himself with good people and valued those that worked hard like he did.  He was driven to provide security for his family and his enterprises were successful.  Although he semi-retired at the age of 78, he continued to make construction loans until he was 90.

His success in business and his financial acumen soon led to many board and advisory positions.  He served as the Vice Chairman of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle, a director of the Federal National Mortgage Association of Dallas, Texas and a director of the Utah Housing Authority.

He maintained ties with the military becoming the Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army for Utah.  He was an Honorary Colonel of the Utah National Guard and awarded the Bronze Minuteman Award.

He always regretted not being able to complete his education at the University of Utah but maintained his Beta friendships and his relationships with the school.  He served as Chairman of the National Advisory Council and Chairman of the President’s Club.  He was honored with a Distinguished Alumni Award and Merit of Honor. He served the State of Utah as a member of the Board of Regents and of the Utah Higher Education Assistance Authority where he chaired the Student Loan Finance Committee.

Because he was born in Ogden and his businesses prospered there, Jack wanted to give back to the community in a meaningful way.  He believed that Weber State College could be an important economic engine for the city that had fallen on hard economic times.  As a Regent he pushed for its designation as a University and then gave generously to the school of business which was renamed in his honor.  He served on Weber State’s Advisory Board and received an Honorary Doctorate in 1983.

He was a long time member and past president of the Ogden Golf and Country Club, Ogden Rotary Club, Desert Horizons Country Club, and the Eldorado Country Club in Indian Wells, California.  Jack was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where he was an Elder.

Jack was a wonderful father and husband.  In his words, “he loved and lived for his four children”.  He was the wind beneath their wings.  He is survived by Mary Ann (Don) Garner, John Kelly (Kathy) Goddard, and Christopher W. (Beverly) Goddard; son-in-law, Elliot J. Hulet; two grandsons, Kelly Jr. and Jason; and four great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Geraldine; parents, two sisters, Ruth Hinchcliff and Jeanne French; brother, Robert Goddard; and daughters, Anne and Susie G. Hulet.

Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, January 14, 2015 at 11 a.m. at Lindquist’s Ogden Mortuary, 3408 Washington Blvd.  Friends may visit with family on Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m. and Wednesday from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the mortuary.  Interment, Lindquist’s Washington Heights Memorial Park, 4500 Washington Blvd.

Please no flowers, consider instead a memorial donation to the John B. Goddard School of Business, 1337 Edvalson Street, WSU, Ogden, UT 84408, Ogden Nature Center, 966, 12 ^th St., Ogden, UT 84404, or a charity of your choice.