Memorial Mass

Our Lady of the Mountains, Jackson Wyoming
Rosary – 12:45pm
Mass – 1:00pm

About 200 people came to pray and support us and celebrate John. Polly Zeren was the Cantor and Francis Koerber was the organist. Fr. Lucas and Fr. Phil concelebrated a solemn liturgy. The readings of the day were given.


Eulogy (given by Francis & Tami)

“John Joseph Koerber

Thank you for coming to pray for John
and to support our family in this difficult time.

I first stand here to honor my dear wife and an incredible mother to all of my children, and to John. She spent her life loving, feeding, caring, educating and raising up our children in the Faith and for life. John was fortunate to have his mother with him day in and day out, nurturing and centering him in a foundation that was unshakeable. John’s character was one grounded in a confidence that allowed him to express fully every aspect of his
wonderful and creative genius.

Tami’s remarks were given here.

God is bursting into our lives. Because of John, God is speaking clearly and tenderly to us. Sometimes God is NOT silent.
And today is one of those days.

Boy. John is our baby. Will always be.
He only moved out July 28, just a few months ago.

Son. There is no greater gift than a son or a daughter. I have always said that life pales in the light of having children. You can never have too many. John’s later terms of endearment for me were ‘old man’ (one that we often hear), but the one he affectionately spoke a number of times was a Germanic reference ‘mein papa’. For Tami, well, she was always “mommy”,
even just a few days ago she heard it again.

John is bursting into our lives.

Astronaut. John was a member HUNCH (Highschoolers United with NASA to Create Hardware.) He flew on the last 0 Gravity expedition in Houston Texas. But even more, he took off like a rocket into his very short place in true manhood. This past July, he went from living in The Mission to putting himself in his own house with two cars, (one his beloved 67 VW) and a job as a draftsman with PC industries in Afton. He quickly became an invaluable asset to their endeavors in numerous ways.

Machinist, Inventor, Entrepreneur. John continued to serve as a volunteer for the Robotics Club at JH High School. I know there he will be sorely missed. We have donated some of Johns personal tools to their effort. He had many, many projects going on at the same time, along with his best friend, colleague and partner, Harry Shipp who you may meet today. John and I were always scheming and creating things together.
You will see pictures of this on his website as I post them.

Brother. Uncle. Friend. Employee par excellence. Sometimes hard to be the youngest of five, but always loved nonetheless, John shared a room with three other brothers growing up. This past Thanksgiving, John spent the day playing with his nephew and niece creating lasting memories for us all. You, his friends here today, don’t need me to convince you that
he had a heart for all of you.

God is bursting into our lives through John.

Foodie. Sushi, Thai, Chinese, Italian, Indian, McDonalds, he loved them all. We used to go to Chinatown and drink an entire pot of Jasmine tea with our meals every time.

Dreamer. Everything comes from a hope and a dream. John dreamed big. His dreams were so important that at times they eclipsed the reality of his day to day, the temporary necessity of heeding time and the disappointment of physical bumps and scrapes. We walked into his house two days ago, and his house was bourgeoning with his dreams. They filled every room. Tools, projects, mini drawers and binders filled with metal parts, pages of transistors carefully labelled and the VW in his garage
slowly on the mend.

John, we love you, we are praying for you and we will miss you.”


After the liturgy, a reception was held in the church hall. To conclude the afternoon, Francis & Tami gave a joint eulogy and invited others to share among whom John’s employers spoke, Harry and Kendra Shipp, Shirley Craighead and others.”

Fr. Phil concluded with the prayer to the Holy Spirit.

“Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.”

4 thoughts on “Memorial Mass”

  1. There is something to be said for a person and their family when you feel a connection, admiration and love when you haven’t even met. ~ The memorials to John are so poignant and beautiful. ~ May his soul rest in the peace of Christ.

  2. Well this makes me feel close to you all in your joy for John and your grief in your missing him. We are heart broken, but filled with hope in reading these missives. God bless you and keep you very close. Love Susie and Stuart

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