James H. Froehle

James Howard Froehle passed away on September 11, 2025 at the age of 93. He died peacefully at home surrounded by his family, which is fitting for how he lived his long and incredibly rich life. For the many people who knew our Dad, you know this is a profound loss. We have only begun the journey of learning to live in this world without him.

Our Dad was so many things-proud Navy veteran, lifelong labor union brother, Irish Democrat, devout Catholic, AA sponsor, wicked handball player, avid golfer, lover of Pinochle and a talented craftsman who could build, fix or conjure up literally anything….the list goes on and on. However, his super power was not just what he did, but how he did it. Dad was endlessly curious, terribly funny and truly the master of showing big love-for others, for life, and in particular for our mother and his wife of 64 years.

When Dad proposed to Mary Tuchfarber, he had only known her for four months. He often said that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever met. And for Dad, who was always drawn to people who were interesting characters, Mom was straight out of central casting. In truth, they were both interesting characters who cherished all of the looney attributes of the other. As they raised nine children and navigated a world and a life they never would have imagined in 1958, they always embraced people and experiences that made our lives fun, off-center and more than a bit wacky. As good as Dad was at Irish storytelling, any story he told with Mom as his sidekick was an example of those two at their very best.

The sadness that his nine children feel with his loss is softened by the fact that we also know how blessed we are for the parents who raised us. Our Dad was a natural teacher and was so generous when sharing his talents and skills with each of us. In spite of holding multiple jobs to support his large family, he found the time to pack us up and take us on weekly trips to the library to share his love of reading. He was a long-time subscriber to National Geographic so that we learned that there was a great big world to explore, and he routinely interrupted nightly dinners to tell someone to “go get the dictionary” to look up a word or idea that was new to the table. When it came our time to leave, it never occurred to him to dictate our future. To Jim Froehle, his job was to make sure we knew that he always had our backs if we needed him.

And through his teaching, he knew the power of example. The story of Dad’s life would not be complete without talking about his personal courage. Forty-three years ago, he had the strength to confront himself and what made him human, and decide to choose life and his family over his addiction to alcohol. He got sober, and through remarkable human fortitude and true selflessness, he stayed sober every day thereafter until the day he died. Always the teacher, he showed us that people can change, and gave us a priceless lesson on exactly why we are all here. On the day he died, we heard again from someone who got sober and told us what a powerful role model Dad was for maintaining his sobriety. We heard that same story so many times from people who Dad touched with his generous spirit.

Finally, Dad’s grandchildren and great-grandchildren have grieved with us during his illness and death in a way that reveals again just what he means to them and how much he loved them. He embodied the best of Superman, he was the patriarch who could do anything, the grandparent who hid his chocolate from everyone but them, the card shark who would beat you at Christmas Eve euchre with a wide smile on his face, and the man who loved their ornery grandmother and never asked her to change a thing. Although at times there were complaints from his grandchildren that his bear hugs were “just too strong”, he never changed that embrace or his parting directives to “stay safe”, “have a ball” and “call me if something good happens”. And when it became clear that their beloved grandmother was struggling with dementia, they watched their grandfather remain devoted to her and her care during the long goodbye. It was one of his last lessons for us on the power of big love and the dignity of being truly selfless.

There are so many people to thank for everything they did for Dad. We were definitely surrounded by angels-thank you Kelly and Bre for loving Dad and taking such good care of him. To his granddaughter Brooke, what an incredible gift you were to your grandfather when he needed you. He always loved your spirit, and we were reminded of why when watching you care for him with courage, skill and deep love. You are amazing.

And to Jean Hargett. We have no words to even begin to tell you what you meant to him and to us during the last six years. You are an extraordinary person, we will be eternally grateful for your tireless devotion to Dad and the friendship the two of you had in his final years.

Jim Froehle was born on June 29, 1932. He was preceded in death by his wife Mary Froehle, and he is survived by his children Mary Beth Claus (David), Jean Leisure, Mark Froehle, John Froehle, Paula Froehle (Todd), Bob Froehle (Chris), Bill Froehle (Lanie), Kathy Morman (Rich) and Brian Froehle (Nikki), as well as his grandchildren Matthew Leisure (Laura), Nathan Claus (Rachel), Abigail Esmena Froehle (Mark), Nicole Powers (Joe), Erin Craig, Jenna Leisure, Ben Claus, Tyler Froehle (Rebekah), Alexander Kellison (Mary), Ryan Claus, Brendon Froehle (Courtney), Michael Froehle, Brooke Froehle (Jay), Madison Froehle (Justin), Grace Kellison, Steven Morman, Katelyn Morman and Megan Morman; and his great-grandchildren Tai Stewart, Kiyah Barnes, Kawai Stewart, Jaxen Powers, Nora Leisure, Jade Powers, Grace Leisure, Princeton James Barnes, Wesley Froehle, Adelaide Claus, Archie Froehle, William Claus and Oakley Pickerell. His fourteenth great-grandchild is due in December.

Jim is survived by his sister Mary (Froehle) Hummeldorf and was preceded in death by his parents William F. Froehle and Dorothy Elizabeth (O’Brien) Froehle, and by his siblings Will, Tom, Ben, Dottie, Don and Michael.

There will be a Mass celebrating Dad’s life on October 30th at 10:00am at St Dominic’s Church in Delhi, a reception and lunch will follow Mass in O’Conner Hall at St. Dominic. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider a donation to “Reading is Fundamental, Inc.”, the oldest and largest organization committed to promoting child literacy. https://www.rif.org/