NORWICH – June F. Goehner, 75, of Norwich, passed away Saturday morning, Aug. 2, 2008 at her home.
The daughter of Louis James and Rose Helen (VanderBrook) Fanning, June was born in Cortland in June of 1933. Growing up in the Cortland area, she attended the local schools, graduating from Cortland High School in 1951. June went on to higher education, attending RIT, from which she graduated in 1954 with a degree in merchandising. On July 14, 1956, in Cortland, she married Robert Goehner, and they relocated to Norwich where she remained until her passing. Along with having their own children, June and Bob cared for foster children. June worked for a brief time in the retail industry in both Binghamton and Norwich, but soon left her career to become a “professional grandma” when she opened a day care service in her own home. For over 40 years, June took care of hundreds of children, including multiple generations of the same family in several instances, and would act as a mentor for the parents if she felt they needed a hand. June was an “automatic” knitter, so skilled that she could continue to knit while answering the phone or doing other tasks. She was a lady who held no animosity toward anyone and her door was always open and “the coffee pot is always on.”
June is survived by her daughters: Anne Hamilton and her husband David of Salisbury, Md., and Emily Goehner of Norwich; her grandson, Matthew Pike and his wife Sarah; by her sister, Helen Ackroyd and her husband Theodore of Cortland; her sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Elmer and Cecil Goehner; by her grand-dog, Duncan; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins. June was predeceased by her husband, Bob, on May 22, 1990; and by her sisters and their husbands, Mary and James Riese and Marcene and John Sherman.
A celebration of June’s life will be held at noon Thursday at St. Paul’s Church. The Rev. Douglas Cunningham, pastor, will officiate. Interment will be in St. Paul’s Cemetery. At June’s request, anyone attending the memorial is to wear brightly colored clothes in keeping with the celebration. Friends may call at St. Paul’s Church on Thursday from 11 a.m. to noon.
Please consider memorial contributions to Hospice and Palliative Care of Chenango County, 21 Hayes St., Norwich, NY 13815; or St. Paul’s Church Building Fund, 30 Pleasant St., Norwich, NY 13815.
Arrangements are by the R.J. Fahy Funeral Home.