John Leonard Hatch

John Leonard Hatch was born June 26, 1945 in Weiser, Idaho, the youngest of 10 children of John Lawrence and Della Miller Hatch.
 He graduated from Weiser High School where he was a member of the tennis team. Tennis was a life-long love of his, playing on competitive teams for most of his life.
 He also loved hiking, camping and fishing in Idaho’s backcountry. There was no dirt mountain road too obscure to explore.
 He served in the U.S. Army 167th Signal Corps in Vietnam, receiving an honorable discharge in December 1967.
 John earned his bachelor’s degree from Utah State University and a master’s in public administration from Boise State University. His life’s work was in service to the people of Idaho and beyond.
 He was an Idaho Farm Bureau Federation field man and the director of public affairs. He was a lobbyist to the State Legislature. He was a natural resource and agricultural liaison for Senator Steve Symms, and then for Congressman, now U.S. Senator Mike Crapo. He was appointed by President George H.W. Bush to serve as Western Region Director of the Rural Development Administration in 1992.
 John was appointed by Governor Phil Batt to serve as director of the Idaho Department of Agriculture. He was an administrative officer for the Bureau of Land Management Boise District until he retired in 2010.
 John married Dawn Collins Cassell in 1985 and became a father to her four children. They lived in Pocatello and later moved to Boise. John was a beloved husband, father and grandfather and will be missed tremendously. He was a man of great and humble faith in the Lord.
 He was preceded in death by his parents; two half sisters, Lucille and Lillian; and sisters, Dorothy Arment and Eileen Hatch.
 He is survived by his wife Dawn, of Boise; children, Steven Scott Cassell, Cynthia KC Meyer (Rick), Teresa Dawn Robinson (Paul), Brenda Lee Kipling (Rudyard); seven grandchildren; sisters and brother, Carol Clayton, Geneve Romriell, Margie Skow, JoAnn Petersen, Larry Hatch, Emily Leach and Donna Brown.
 He died on Dec. 1, 2020 and funeral services were held on Dec. 5, 2020 in Boise, Idaho.