Jonathan Homer Hoke

Jonathan Homer Hoke, 71, was born in Elkhart, Indiana, to Leona Mae (Rhinesmith) Hoke and Clarence Merlwood Hoke.  They lived in Dunlap, Indiana, until a house fire destroyed their home.  They then moved to Conn Avenue in Elkhart.  Jonathan attended school at Beardsley School until the fifth grade.  The family then moved to a small farm in Dunlap.   Mr. Hoke had three sisters – Ethlyn (George) Riley, Goshen, Carolyn Mary Hoke, and Nadine (Tom) Corse, South Bend, Indiana.  His parents and sister, Carolyn Mary Hoke preceded him in death.   Jonathan graduated from Concord High School in 1953.  He also had joined the Indiana National Guard in his sophomore year in high school and served three years, receiving an honorable discharge.  Mr. Hoke started to work as a draftsman at the Bendix missile section as well as attending night school at IUSB, South Bend.  He then joined the Army Security Agency and spent his three year army commitment with them.  At the time they were the most secret organization in the US government.  Today they’re called the National Security Agency/Central Security Service.   Mr. Hoke spent his time on the east coast of the United States and in Frankfort/Nuremberg, Germany.  Nineteen months were spent at Herzo Base, a major US intercept station.  Each day’s intercepts were decoded and sent to Washington.  Parts were given to the CIA for the president’s daily brief.  Also during that three year period Mr. Hoke married Elizabeth Ann Miller of Bristol, Indiana, and they had a child, Jonathan H. Hoke, Jr.  Mr. Hoke left the service in 1957.   He returned to work at the Bendix Missile Division, and the family moved to Heaton Lake, north of Elkhart.  Mr. Hoke used the GI Bill for additional schooling at the Cleveland Institute of Electronics.  He then worked in the electronics department of Bendix.  In the 1970’s Mr. Hoke helped introduce computer-aided drafting to the electronics department.  Mr. Hoke authored a 500 page design standard for the design and engineering of printed wiring boards.  He also wrote two other engineering specifications on the manufacturing and component assembly of printed wiring boards.   He was the Bendix Corporation’s representative to the IPC (Institute of Printed Circuits).  He attended several advanced design courses presented by the Computervision and Mentor Graphics corporations, as well as courses offered by Purdue University and the University of Notre Dame on supervisory development.   Prior to getting into supervision, Mr. Hoke worked on several notable projects.  He worked on the Talos Missile guidance system and incorporated new guidance systems into the Navy’s requirements for it, and he also worked for the NASA ALSEP program for lunar landing experiments, some of which are still on the moon.  He was then sent to the Bendix Aerospace Systems Division at Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he assisted in the electronic packaging of the first communication satellites; in developing an emergency communications system (the Bean Stalk Project) for an atomic attack; and in developing the guidance system for the (at the time) Navy’s Standard Missile one.   Jon returned to Bendix, South Bend, which had become the Allied Signal Corporation.  The missile plant had stopped making missiles and was turning over the remaining ones to the Vandle target drones for missle tests in the Pacific.  The Energy Controls Division in South Bend had decided to create electronic fuel controls for the large aircraft manufacturers, and Mr. Hoke was assigned to that project.   During that period Jon and Elizabeth had three more children – Joann Elizabeth (Cramer), Jennifer Sue (Snyder), and Joni Lee (Bradberry).  In July of 1976 Elizabeth died of a massive heart attack.  Mr. Hoke had twelve grandchildren, with one deceased.  Mr. Hoke had established an independent business of creating printed wiring for small businesses in the South Bend/Mishawaka area.  The business was phased out after his wife died, and he concentrated on his work at the Allied Signal Corporation.   He was a member and master of Zion Grange 2189, Bristol.  He also joined the Osolo Township fire department as a volunteer firefighter.  After the fire department began to provide ambulance duties, Mr. Hoke studied to become an emergency medical technician.  Later he became a certified paramedic.  At the time the ambulance Osolo EMS was part of the Osolo Fired Department.  The decision was made to separate the two entities, and Mr. Hoke was the director of Osolo Emergency Medical Services for the first few years.   Carol Wiebe and Jon were married on December 30, 1983, in South Bend, and established their home in Granger, Indiana.  Mr. Hoke retired from Allied Signal after forty years, and the couple moved to Goshen, Indiana.  Carol and Jon then completed a two year service assignment as the Directors of Program Volunteer Service with the Church of the Brethren at their general offices near Chicago.   Mr. Hoke was a lifetime member of the National Management Association; the Allied Signal (now Honeywell) employees’ association; the Amateur Radio Relay League; Elkhart County RACES (radio amateur civil emergency service); the Elkhart County Radio Association; the Elkhart County Emergency Service, SKYWARN.  Mr. Hoke was an FCC-licensed (extra class) K9HYU radio operator since 1956.  He was the deputy director of the Elkhart County Emergency Management department from 2002-2004.  Mr. Hoke was a member of the American Legion, the National Army Security Agency Association, the Association of Former Intelligence Officers, and he is a member of College Mennonite Church.   He is survived by his wife, Carol; a son, Jon (Teresa) Hoke of Tucson, Arizona; three daughters, Joann (Don) Cramer and Joni (Jim) Bradberry, both of Goshen, and Jennifer Snyder of Elkhart; and 11 grandchildren.  Also surviving are two sisters, Ethlyn Riley of Goshen and Nadine (Tom) Corse of South Bend.   He was preceded in death by his first wife, Elizabeth; a grandson, Robbie Snyder, and a sister, Carolyn Mary Hoke.   Friends may call 1 to 3 p.m., Saturday, March 11, at the Gathering Rooms at College Mennonite Church.   A 3:30 p.m. Saturday, March 11, 2006, service  will be held at the College Mennonite Church.   Pastor Klaudia Smucker will officiate.   A Military graveside service will be held in Zion Lutheran Cemetery, Bristol, Indiana.   Memorial contributions may be given to Mennonite Central Committee or Heifer Project International.