Irving Higgins

In 1924, Irving West Higgins arrived at the stroke of midnight on June 6th and June 7th in Boise, Idaho. He celebrated his birthday on whichever day suited him best. Biff was born at home in the house his father had built. He was the firstborn son of a mechanic, Rhyl Harris Higgins and a grade school teacher, Anna Ellis (Packenham) Higgins. Biff had only one younger brother, Leland. He was called "Biff" because his great uncle couldn't remember "Punch" which was Irving's original grade school nickname. The name stuck. In 1947, after his Naval tour of duty in WWII, he met and married a blonde beauty, Jeanne Louise Carlson, from Idaho Falls, Idaho. After the birth of their first child in California, they settled in Boise, Idaho and went on to have 3 more; two girls and a boy. They were married for 63 years until Jeanne passed away in 2009. Biff lived a diverse life and embraced all of life's transitions by switching hats often. First and foremost he was a devoted husband - he was also a Purple Heart Naval veteran in the WWII Pearl Harbor aftermath, an entrepreneur and owner of S.O.S Television and Electronics, a father, an early computer geek, a hunter, a fly fisherman, a master gardener, a grandfather, a story teller, a fraternal member of the Elks and Lions, a substitute teacher, a counselor, a psychologist, a re-arranger of the forest around their cabin, a great grandfather, and a self-taught inventor of ingenious ways of making things work…mostly. Biff graduated from Boise High School, received a Bachelor's degree in Biology at the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master's degree in Psychology at the University of Idaho. They are survived by their 4 children: Kathleen (Tom Menzel), Karen (Obenchain, Scheuerer), Kelli (Kurt Pfleger) and Kevin "Myke" (Mindy Beck); 10 grandchildren: Tyra (Gardner Erickson) and Whitney Menzel; Melissa and Kristin Obenchain; Ryan Pfleger (Karen Balukoff), Bonnie (Mark Fransen), Kevin Pfleger (Arianne Moore) and Sally Pfleger; and Kjel and Anja Higgins; and 7 great-grandchildren. Biff died peacefully in the morning hours of September 15, 2010 of natural causes. Private graveside services will be conducted for family and close friends at Terrace Lawn Memorial Gardens, September 27, 2010 at 11 am. Popa will always be remembered for the hats he wore and the love he shared with his family and friends. For more about Biff and to share memories with the family please visit his memorial webpage online at: