John Charles Carriger passed into the arms of his Lord on December 21, 2021 after several years of ill health. He was born September 27, 1945 in Boonville, Missouri, near the hometown of his mother, Julia Ruth Lefever Carriger. John’s father, John Elbert “Al” Carriger, who was serving in WWII, joined them shortly afterward and the young family moved to Marfa, Texas, where John’s grandfather operated a retail store.
After five years in Marfa, where sister Ann and brother Richard were born, the West Coast called the family to Santa Cruz County, where John’s father operated a Ben Franklin store in Boulder Creek.
In 1952 the family moved to Healdsburg and purchased the Ben Franklin store. John attended school in Healdsburg and graduated from Healdsburg High School in 1963, having been proud to be a tackle on the undefeated 1962 HHS football team. He graduated from Cal Poly, SLO, in 1967, married Kathleen York, and began his service in the Army Corps of Engineers. He served three years in the active Army, including a tour in Vietnam.
Upon his honorary discharge, he began a 36-year career as a mechanical engineer in the San Francisco Bay area. He was known as a problem solver, and his expertise was respected worldwide. He also joined the U.S. Army Reserves and served in the Corps of Engineers for a total of 28 years, retiring as a Colonel.
John was dedicated to the Boy Scouts of America. He served as scoutmaster, commissioner and other positions in the Pacific Skyline Council, and after moving back to Healdsburg permanently in 2006, he was very active in the Redwood Empire Council, serving as its president for two years.
In 2003, at their 40th high school class reunion, John became reacquainted with classmate Diane Schmidt Johannsen, and in December of that year they married. Theirs was a loving marriage, filled with many adventures, including a month-long trip to Italy in 2011, several cross-country train trips and many years of RVing to locations such as Ashland, Glacier and Grand Canyon.
John is survived by wife Diane, sons John Jeffrey and Christian (Lizz), grandson John Bruce, sister Ann (Tom) Wittenbrock and brother Richard (Judy) and their children and grandchildren, as well as many cousins. He will be fondly remembered by Valary (Roger) Bloom and their sons Ryan and Braydon.
Private family services will be conducted.
