Gordon Hotchkiss

1 John 5:11-12 “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”

Gordon G. Hotchkiss went home to be with the Lord on August 16, 2022, surrounded by his loving family.

Born on November 23, 1937, in Clear Lake, Iowa to Fred and Donna (Baumgartner). Growing up in rural Clear Lake, he loved to swim, hunt and fish. He attended country school before graduating from Clear Lake High School in 1956.

Gordon moved to Minot, North Dakota, to work for Western Electric. While in Minot he also attended Minot State University in 1958. This is where he met the love of his life, Geraldine M. Armstrong. The two were wed on May 31, 1959, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Glenburn, North Dakota.

While at Western Electric Gordon got transferred to North Western Bell where he worked for 30 years. Starting in craft, he worked his way up and retired as a Course Developer out of the office in Urbandale, Iowa. He liked to work with people, so his favorite position for the company was as an Instructor working with students. After a brief retirement, Gordon's desire to teach led him to DMACC in Ankeny Iowa where he was granted the opportunity to open a new communication department for Telephony. He taught there for 12 years until his second retirement in 1999.

Gordon loved his wife and family with all his heart – especially his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was a huge Hawkeyes and Green Bay Packers fan and avid fisherman. He enjoyed coaching his sons’ ball teams. He taught them to hunt, fish, and work on cars among other things. He loved God and was strong in his Christian faith. He enjoyed Bible study and was very involved with the church. He spent a lot of time at Bethel Mission working with the residents in downtown Des Moines. He shared Christ with everyone, whether he knew them or not. Often making crosses out of paper and sharing them with others.

Gordon is survived by his beautiful bride and best friend, Gerri, his sons, Dan and Terry (Mary); his grandchildren David (Jessica) Hotchkiss, Emily (JJ) Petersen, Sarah (Danny) Dowd, and Bethany (Tanner) Battles and his great-grandchildren Lydia Hotchkiss, Eliza Dowd, Zion Battles and Dietrich Petersen.

Gordon was preceded in death by his parents, Fred and Donna; his brothers Donald, Fred and Gary and his sisters Betty (MacDonald), Peggy (Simpson), Nancy (Auffet) and Patty (Voshell).

A celebration of life will be held on Friday, August 26, at 11:00 am at Lutheran Church of Hope in West Des Moines, 925 Jordan Creek Parkway followed by visitation with the family from noon until 2:00 pm in the Bridge Room, also at the church. He will be interned at Highland Memory Gardens, where the family will have a private service.

If you are unable to attend the service in person, please join via live stream Gordon Hotchkiss Funeral Service.

In lieu of flowers, the family would like memorial contributions to be made to the Alzheimer's Association.

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