| Graduation Year | Faculty |
| Date of Passing | Dec 16, 1996 |
| About | CARL HOCH, 73, SCHOOL COUNSELOR, REMEMBERED FOR JOYOUS SPIRIT Students all over the Santa Clara Valley remember Carl Hoch partly because for 30 years he counseled them first at Pioneer High School and then as school district liaison with the Central County Occupational Center. But hundreds, probably thousands, would say his smile was etched in their memory because he knew their names and remembered their birthdays and sent them off to find a career, a faith or both. ''When I was a shy young high school boy at Pioneer High, Carl was there with that joyous spirit and huge heart to pick me up and guide me,'' said San Jose police Lt. Phil Beltran. Elaine Pickard, another former Pioneer student, said, ''He let us know him beyond the superficial; we knew of his love for his family, his God and for us.'' Support for students And Mr. Hoch's openness touched Sharon Andres, formerly director of vocational education for the San Jose Unified School District and now its desegregation director: ''Anyone who has ever worked with Carl knows that he single-handedly provided futures to hundreds of young men and women through his support and encouragement.'' That was a natural result of his role as go-between for his school district and the occupational center, known as the Regional Vocational Center in the 1970s. Today the center provides training for students from six major public school districts in the county. Fourteen hundred juniors and seniors spend half their school day preparing to take jobs in such fields as computers, food service, auto mechanics and health. A busy man Mr. Hoch spent at least one day a week at every high school in the San Jose Unified School District and some time every day at the Central County Occupational Center on Hillsdale Avenue. Mr. Hoch and June, his wife of 47 years, had attended Peninsula Bible Church in Palo Alto, then as elders helped to found South Hills Community Church, later returning to Peninsula. They put their faith to work as volunteers for Young Life, a 55-year-old nationwide organization that introduces youths to Christian principles. In their home, the couple for many years led College Bible Study/Leadership Training for Young Life and guided a number of them into full-time Young Life positions, including their son, Kevin, who later went to work for General Electric. Their daughter, Cynthe, teaches school in Colorado. Mr. Hoch grew up in the town of Yuma, Colo. and attended Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, before serving in the U.S. Army's 96th Infantry Division and earning a Bronze Star for combat bravery at Okinawa in World War II. Started career in Denver He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Denver University, taught in Denver's schools for a dozen years, then joined Pioneer High in 1963. Mr. Hoch retired in 1992, but he really didn't retire, said his son. The Central County Occupational Center drew him back frequently, but he and June Hoch did travel some. ''Everywhere they went, wherever they traveled, my dad would run into a kid he knew,'' Kevin Hoch said, ''even on the Staten Island Ferry.'' In August 1995, Mr. Hoch learned that he had lung cancer. He was not a smoker. Doctors gave him about six months, but chemotherapy extended that long enough for him to take his family on a trip to Disney World in Florida and a cruise to the Bahamas. He died Monday at home in San Jose. He was 73. ''The best way to summarize the character of his life,'' said Bob Scudder, a regional Young Life official, ''is from the Bible: 'Well done, good and faithful servant.' '' Born: Dec. 9, 1923, Yuma, Colo. Died: Dec. 16, 1996, San Jose, Calif. Survived by: Wife, June Hoch of San Jose; daughter and son-in-law, Cynthe and Douglas McFarland of Castle Rock, Colo.; son and daughter-in-law, Kevin and Karen Hoch of Los Gatos; sister, Betty Johnson of Maui, Hawaii; grandchildren, Sarah McFarland, Kaela and Taylor Hoch. Services: Memorial at 7 p.m. today at Peninsula Bible Church, 3505 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, Calif. 94306. Memorial: Donations may be made to the Carl Hoch Memorial Scholarship Fund, c/o Central County Occupational Center, 760 Hillsdale Ave., San Jose, Calif. 95136; Young Life of San Jose, 1320 Lincoln Ave., San Jose, Calif. 95125; Peninsula Bible Church; or Hospice of the Valley, 1150 S. Bascom Ave., San Jose, Calif. 95128. PHOTO: [Carl Hoch] Edition: Morning Final Page: 4B San Jose Mercury News (CA) - December 19, 1996 |
