Joseph Hoffman, 87

Joseph “Joe“ Hoffman was born Sept. 21, 1936, to Andrew and Anna Hoffman in Medford, Ore. He passed away peacefully March 8, 2024, in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, with his sons, Michael and Gary, at his side. Joe’s middle son, Don, predeceased Joe in 2022. 

Joe grew up one of nine siblings in Santa Ana, Calif. He attended St. Joseph’s Catholic School and Mater Dei High School and began working at a young age with his dad and his brothers, repairing boots and shoes at the El Toro Marine Base. In 1958, Joe married Doris Haupert, his wife of 28 years and the mother of his three boys.

Joe later joined his brothers, John and Robert, in business in Placentia, Calif., where Joe ran the retail side of Hoffman‘s Shoes for 15 years. For most of those years, he worked side-by-side in the shoe store with his younger brother, Jim.

In 1978, Joe rejoined his brothers in Kellogg, Idaho, as a partner in Hoffman’s Boots. Even after he retired from that business, he assisted his son, Don, for several years in operating Hoffman's Shoe Box in Post Falls. Joe had always been drawn to retail, loved interacting with his customers and took great joy and pride in being a business owner.

From a very young age, Joe was drawn to all of the major sports and formed many fond memories from Sunday games of touch football and long ball. He was a lifelong fan of the Dodgers, Lakers and Rams, and loved poring over the baseball box scores to check up on his favorite players.

Joe was an avid people person, and no one he met was a stranger for long. He had a big heart and a lively sense of humor. Joe had an uncommon curiosity about people and genuine empathy toward the lives and challenges of those around him. Acquaintances would quickly transform into friends as they sensed his openness and his interest in their personal biographies. He also loved a good story, of which he kept quite a catalog, and which featured characters from his boyhood pals up through the present. 

Joe was never happier than when he was surrounded by family. In more recent years, given Joe’s health issues and decreasing mobility, his brother, Jim, and Jim’s wife, Judie, were his rock and his lifeline. The angels at Orchard Ridge Senior Living provided Joe with years of friendship and compassionate care beyond measure. The steadfast services from Hospice of North Idaho are also greatly appreciated.

Joe was a loyal and loving father, grandfather and brother. His sons could always rely on him for solid advice, or just as a best friend who would always listen. He is no doubt overjoyed to rejoin Don and everyone else he had been missing. We will still be hearing his voice of guidance and encouragement until we are with him again.

Joe is survived by his sons, Gary (Julie) and Michael (Amanda) Hoffman; by his former wife, Doris Haupert Hoffman; his grandsons, Kevin, Nick, Ryan, and Benjamin Hoffman; and by his siblings, Jeanette Austerman, Robert (Diane) Hoffman and Jim (Judie) Hoffman. He was preceded in death by his son, Don Hoffman, by his parents, Andrew and Anna Hoffman, and by siblings Bernice, Ruth, Joyce, John and Andrew.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be donated in Joe's memory to Orchard Ridge Senior Living.

A funeral mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, March 22, 2024, at Saint Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, at 919 E. Indiana Ave. in Coeur d'Alene, with the burial service at St. Thomas Cemetery. A luncheon in the St. Thomas Parish Hall will immediately follow.  

Arrangements are provided by Yates Funeral Home. www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.