Irvin Earl Goertzen

Irvin Earl Goertzen, age 98, passed peacefully into the welcoming arms of Jesus in the early morning of August 18, 2024, at Bethesda Home in Goessel, Kansas.

Born in Newton, Kansas on Memorial Day, May 30, 1926, to Henry S. and Mathilda (Wedel) Goertzen, Irvin grew up at 508 West Broadway in Newton, the only home he knew until he married the love of his life, Elaine Bachman, on December 26, 1947. She passed away on December 12, 2014.

Irvin came from a long line of Goertzens and Wedels, with roots that began in Russia. His grandfather, Jacob H., came to America in 1874 as a five-year-old, with their family homesteading east of Goessel, Kan. on the ground that eventually became the home where Irvin and Elaine raised their family.

Irvin’s family grew up attending First Mennonite Church in Newton, and that is where he met the love of his life, Elaine, in the church youth group. After dating for about a year, Irvin was drafted and entered civilian public service (CPS) for two years. During that time, Irvin knew another fellow back in Newton also had his eye on Elaine, so Irvin constantly wrote letters to her to “keep the fire burning.” Shortly after he completed his CPS duties, the two were married the day after Christmas, 1947, with a CPS friend, Aaron J Epp, officiating his first marriage ceremony at First Mennonite Church in Newton.

In the spring of 1948, the newlyweds moved to a farm east of Newton that Elaine’s father had just purchased. The farmhouse had no electricity, so the young couple’s early beginnings included kerosene lamps and keeping milk, eggs and butter chilled on a brick of ice in a washtub they kept in the basement. Irvin and Elaine later moved into a small house on the Bethel College farm in Newton. At the time of the move, Elaine was expecting their first child. Richard Earl was born December 17, 1948. Two years later, Keith Eugene joined the little family on December 11, 1950.

Irvin and Elaine and their two young boys then moved to the Graber Golden Guernsey Dairy Farm west of Newton where they lived in a little house on the farmyard, and Irvin worked for the Graber dairy. A daughter, Nancy Elaine, was born on July 17, 1954. In 1955, Irvin and Elaine moved their family to the Goertzen homestead, located 3-½ miles east of Goessel, where Irvin farmed some ground and raised milk cows, chickens and pigs. But this “hobby farm” could not support their growing family, so Irvin continued to work at other jobs off the farm while Elaine was a full-time homemaker.

Their fourth child, Loren Edward, was born October 8, 1957, and it was soon discovered that he had a heart murmur and a “hole” in his heart. Dr. Roland Krause at the Goessel Hospital got Irvin and Elaine connected with the KU Medical Center in Kansas City, where the couple learned that there was nothing that could be done to help their infant son. Doctors in Kansas City said Loren would not survive his first year, but he proved them wrong and continued to grow with the tender loving care of his parents. During this time, the couples’ fourth son, Arlen Everett, was born October 18, 1959. Loren lived to age three when an electrical accident on the farm took his life on July 16, 1961. Burying their sweet little boy was almost too much to bear, but Irvin and Elaine leaned on each other and their faith to pull them through their grief.

The family continued to attend First Mennonite Church in Newton until the early 1960s when they began attending Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church at Goessel.

Their fifth son, Bradford Errol, was born February 20, 1966, and he would complete their family.
Irvin cheated death a couple of times as he survived two serious vehicle accidents that could easily have claimed his life, with the first being a rollover accident when the truck he was driving suddenly lost steering control. Of course, this was in the time before seatbelts, and there were several items, such as a large hydraulic jack and a big wooden block, flying around inside the cab with Irvin as he flipped and rolled several times until he landed in a field. Another accident was a roll-on instead of a roll-over involving a Coop fuel delivery truck that met at an intersection with Irvin’s pickup truck. Keith was a passenger in that pickup, and it was simply not their day, nor the Coop driver’s time to die, as there was very little space inside either of those vehicles when the fully-loaded fuel truck rolled on top of Irvin’s pickup.
Irvin and Elaine enjoyed good health and several years of life after retiring from their jobs, having traveled to Alaska three times plus 32 other states. (He kept a large Rand McNally Atlas with all their trip highways highlighted!) They also enjoyed a Caribbean Cruise with three couples and good friends from Goessel, several bus tours, and trips to Europe on two different occasions: first on a Swiss Anabaptist Roots tour in 1987; and a second time with the Kansas Mennonite Men’s Chorus, giving concerts in the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland. Irvin enjoyed singing with the KMMC for at least 40 years.

Irvin possessed an incredibly clear memory, and he could tell stories upon stories from his childhood and things he remembered throughout the rest of his life. This was a gift that he kept for himself, however, as many times, our family would look to Dad to fill in the details of stories that we could not remember. Numerous time we urged him to write a book, and finally that was accomplished in 2016. Simply titled, “My Story,” by Irvin Goertzen, it is a wonderful time capsule that his family cherishes.

In addition to our mother, Elaine, Irvin was preceded in death by his parents, Henry and Mathilda Goertzen; their precious little son, Loren; Elaine’s parents, Ernest and Prisca Bachman; both of his sisters and their spouses: Edna Ruth Graber (Marlo) and Helen Bachman (Donavan); a daughter-in-law and one granddaughter.

Survivors include four sons: Richard Goertzen of Beatrice, Neb.; Keith Goertzen of Hutchinson; Arlen Goertzen of Almont, Col.; Bradford Goertzen of Goshen, Ind., and one daughter, Nancy Becker of Stockton; 13 grandchildren and 29 great-grandchildren.

The family is especially grateful for the compassionate care of the Bethesda Home staff and Good Shepherd Hospice.

A Celebration of Life service is scheduled for December 27 at the Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church, Goessel, Kan.