Noecker, Melvin James 1920-2009
NOECKER, CLAUSEN, CASTERTON, HOVEY, RISTE, TICKELL, RICHTER, OLSON, FADNESS
Posted By: Joy Moore (email)
Date: 11/12/2012 at 10:06:47
Melvin James Noecker, a lifelong resident of Decorah, passed away on Monday, June 29, 2009 at Wellington Place, at the age of 89. Mel was well known and well regarded by many, and he will be greatly missed by all who knew him.
Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 A.M. Wednesday, July 15, 2009 at First Lutheran Church in Decorah by Rev. Steven M. Jacobsen. Burial will be in Lutheran Cemetery in Decorah with full military honors.
Visitation will be from 4:00 – 7:00 P.M. Tuesday, July 14 at Fjelstul Funeral Home in Decorah, and on Wednesday one hour before the service at the church.
Mel was born January 15, 1920, in Decorah, IA, the son of Leo Ernst and Christine (Clausen) Noecker. His childhood home was the apartment above his father’s carpentry and repair shop on Water Street, what is now known as the Dayton House. As the youngest of six children, he enjoyed fishing and hunting in the local woods as a boy and was an avid fisherman throughout his life, spending every Monday out in his boat on the Mississippi River whenever he was able. He attended local schools, graduating from Decorah High School with the class of 1940.
Mel served in the Army 8th Air Force from January 1943 to October 1945 and was stationed for most of that time in England. He flew 26 B-17 bombing missions over France and Germany, from June 11, 1944 to November 2, 1944, as a Flight mechanic and right waist Gunner. He achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant. Mel enjoyed sharing stories of his military exploits and adventures with his friends and family over the years. He was very proud of his military service, and was also honored by the French government with the French Diplome in 2005 for his service to the Allied forces during the war.
He was united in marriage to Myrtle Louise Casterton on June 15, 1946 at Highland Lutheran Church in rural Decorah, Iowa. This union was blessed with three children: Arden James, Calvin Lowell and Constance Louise. He was a kind and devoted husband and father who cherished his wife and children, as well as all those in his large, extended Noecker and Casterton families.
Mel attended the Kansas City School of Watchmaking in Kansas City, Missouri, from 1946 to his graduation in 1947, after which he took a job working for Carl Albertson at the jewelry store in Decorah. He bought the business in 1958, renamed it Noecker’s Jewelry and operated it, along with his wife, Myrtle, until 1983, when he retired and sold the business to his sister-in-law, Martha (Hovey) Casterton. He was a lifetime member of First Lutheran Church and served as an usher, communion server, greeter and did considerable carpentry work for the church. He was a member of Rotary International, Silvercrest Golf & Country Club, the Elks Lodge, and was a lifetime member of the V.F.W. and the American Legion. He was very active with the Decorah V.F.W. and assisted with military funeral details for many years. He was honored as Grand Marshal of the 2008 Memorial Day Parade in Decorah.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Myrtle, on July 22, 2000; his five brothers: Arthur, Clifford, Peter, Norman, and Melvin William Noecker, in infancy; and by one sister, Esther (Noecker) Riste.
Mel is survived by his three children, nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren: Arden (Tammy) Noecker of Arlington, TX, and their children: Tiffany Noecker, Adrienne Tickell, Erynn Noecker (her daughter, Lilliahna) and Deirdre Noecker (her children, Alex and Tessa); Calvin (Karen) Noecker of Redwood City, CA, and their children: Erik Noecker and Gretchen Noecker; and Connie (Randy) Richter of Lime Springs, IA, and their children, Nathaniel (Erin) Richter, Melanie Richter, and Mychelle Richter; two brothers-in-law: James (Shirley) Casterton of Spring Grove, MN and Bernard (Martha) Casterton of Decorah, IA; and two sisters-in-law: June (Leonard) Olson of Stillwater, MN and Belva Fadness of Decorah, IA.
Source: Fjelstul Funeral Home database
Decorah Lutheran Cemetery
Winneshiek Obituaries maintained by Bruce Kuennen.
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