John Kenneth Nodes, 79

Born June 30, 1936, in Bergenfield, N.J., John Kenneth Nodes learned to talk about the time his family moved to Queens, N.Y., where he acquired and maintained his lovable New York accent. At age 3, his family moved to Hoboken, N.J. He attended Our Lady of Grace School and Church where he was an altar boy.

When he turned 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corp and was honorably discharged three years later. Returning home, he became a member of the Hoboken Police Department. For the next two years, he was constantly badgered by a friend to try out for the fire department. He finally relented, took the test surprising himself by attaining 11th highest position out of 300 applicants. He was born to be a firefighter and relished all 27 years of service. About half of those years were spent in Hoboken with the remaining served in Asbury Park, N.J.

In Asbury, he was the president of the Fire Fighters Union for 10 years; and fought long and hard for his members. He wasn’t afraid to stand up to authority if he felt they were wrong. This resulted in his being suspended three times. He took them to court and won each case based on the union contract he had helped to write. In one incident, the judge called the Fire Chief and City Manager before his bench telling them they were playing Russian Roulette with their employees and he didn’t want to see such a frivolous case in his court ever again. Then he leaned over the bench getting in their faces and yelled, “Have I made myself perfectly clear?” He had; the nonsense stopped; and Ken retired a hero among his fellow firefighters.

As a young man, he followed in his father’s footsteps and learned to play the fife, which he played in a fife and drum band participating in many New York and New Jersey parades.

Nearing retirement, he read in the National Geographic a story about the Great Inland Empire in a faraway land called Idaho. Upon investigating our area, a decision was made to retire and move in 1986 to a brand new home on Spirit Lake. His wife, Diane passed in 1993. In 1999, he married Elaine Traaen who survives him along with his daughters, Jacqueline Toro of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Christine McCormack of Pt. Pleasant, N.J.; brother Dr. Daniel Nodes, Baylor University, of Waco, Texas; four grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews, Preceded in death by parents, Caroline and John K. Nodes; sister Margaret and brother Peter.

Ken will be remembered for among other things, being a man with a thousand jokes who love to make people laugh. He also loved children and learned through his membership in Post Falls Kiwanis of a need for mentors in the local grade schools. He was blessed to have been a volunteer for eight years until health issues made it impossible for him to continue. These numerous health issues ended his life on April 14, 2016, at Hospice House of North Idaho.

His was a life well lived and we already miss that twinkle in his eye. Private services will be held on Saturday, April 16, 2016, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Spirit Lake, with burial to follow at Spirit Lake Cemetery. Please share your thoughts and memories of John in his online memorial at www.belltowerfuneralhome.com.