James Francis Vogel

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James Francis Vogel

December 27, 1935 ~ October 1, 2022

James (Jim) was born in Nezperce, Idaho to Fred and Anna Vogel.  He was born at home, the ninth of 10 children in the family.  When he graduated from Nezperce Grade School, he was the shortest of the five students in his class; the other four were girls. That would soon change. By the time he graduated from Gonzaga Prep High School, he was 6 feet 4 inches tall.  

Jim joined the Navy, where he developed an interest in electronics. After his tour of duty, he enrolled at Idaho State Technical College, in Pocatello, which led to a lifelong career as an electronics technician with the Federal Aviation Administration. Before attending his first FAA school in Oklahoma City, he married Judy Conger, a friend from Sacramento, California. The next February they headed off to his first assignment in Fairbanks, Alaska. A couple of kids who didn’t know that “you can’t drive to Alaska in the winter,” as Judy’s mother said. Well, you could, and they did.

Two of their five children, Mary Beth and John, were born in Fairbanks; Jimmy in San Antonio, Texas (where Jim was sent to a school); and Scott and Larry in Bountiful, Utah. Jim had a 33-plus year career with the FAA, retiring at age 55 and ready for what comes next...what came was travel. Jim and Judy were blessed to be able to visit 43 foreign countries (Jim kept count) and every state capitol in the United States. After that, Jim got a National Parks Passport and endeavored to get a stamp from every site in the book. He was always goal oriented…and Judy was just happy to go along. Jim enjoyed camping, hiking, fishing and singing, especially at the Vogel family reunions.

These last years have kept Jim pretty much homebound but that has given him a chance to grow closer to his children. They have been a great source of strength – where his was failing – and of laughter, which he passed on to them. Think of Jim next time you break into a Happy Wanderer song out on some woodland trail. A celebration of Jim’s life will be held in late December, when the family can gather.