Henry and Louise Witman

Henry (Hank) George Witman and Miriam Louise (Lou) Witman have passed away. Hank died on January 14, 2025. He was 97. Louise died on April 18, 2025. She was 98. Each had experienced extended declines in their health during their stays at the Three Links Care center. They met while attending Sunbury High School in Sunbury, Pennsylvania.

Hank was the son of a Methodist minister and a stay-at-home mom. They didn't start dating until after Hank was discharged from the Army in 1947. Hank used the GI bill to get a degree in history at Bucknell University, a short distance from where they grew up. Lou was the daughter of a skilled carpenter and a production line worker. She was proud of her Pennsylvania Dutch heritage. Education was always the Number #1 priority for Hank and Lou. Hank taught high school history from the early-1950's until 1961 when he began counselling at the high school level in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. A few years later he began admissions work at Dickinson College, also in Carlisle. His employment with the college allowed Lou to begin her degree in English. She completed her first two years before the family moved to Northfield where Hank continued his admissions work at Carleton College.

Throughout the years of Hank's admissions work, he enjoyed being able to recall an incredible volume of minute scholastic facts about the hundreds of students he met. He would make these details part of his conversations with the students belonging to those facts. It was like a circus act. And the students were always amazed and pleased. This memory skill also benefited card games he sometimes found himself in. Carleton also allowed Lou to enroll so she could finish her bachelor's degree in English, which she did in 1971. Being twice the age of many of classmates, her proudest scholastic achievement was receiving an 'A' in Owen Jenkins' advanced rhetoric class. (Owen was known to be fierce in his assessment of his students' work.) After graduating, Lou was a secretary in Carleton's Dean of Students Office and for many years she managed all the student help for the Carleton library, work she truly enjoyed. Both Hank and Lou retired from Carleton in 1991.

Especially during our early years as a family, Hank and Lou loved taking extended car camping trips - particularly through the Western U.S. In 1961, the family took their first real camping trip - from central Pennsylvania to Los Angeles, with a two week stop at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs so Hank could complete his responsibilities as a member of the Air Force reserves. The family were on the road for a month and we loved every minute of it. We camped like this for almost 10 years. The family made a conscious effort to visit most of the National Parks in the Western U.S. Trips like that strongly influenced the values and interests of the family. Hank came to camping through the Army. Lou's upbringing was in a hard-scrabble community in central Pennsylvania which had not included camping or adventure activities, but she gamely participated with the same generous spirit we have all see from her. As we drove from place to place, she was delighted to see geology she learned about in her college coursework, often encouraging stops in roadside pullouts to read the informational signs.

After arriving in Northfield, Hank and Lou's lives revolved around work and the larger Carleton community. They both loved the school and the lively and talented minds of the staff and students they met. For years they found ways to host students in their home, providing home-away-from home experiences for those who came. The favorite of these hosting events was an autumn leaf raking gathering featuring a home cooked meal that included Pennsylvania Dutch baked corn and Shoo Fly Pie. They always had plenty of takers for this invitation. Through to the end of their time, a number of students remained among their closest personal friends. Hank and Lou also loved the Northfield United Methodist Church, where they were members for 56 years, both serving on a number of committees. Lou was particularly pleased to be part of the effort to make the UMC a Welcoming Congregation. Their committee work at the church and their social groups were topics of frequent conversation during family visits.

A service to celebrate their lives is scheduled for July 26, 2025 at 1:00 PM at the Northfield United Methodist Church with a reception to follow. They will be interred at Fort Snelling Military National Cemetery with military honors the day prior.

Henry and Louise are survived by their two children, Susan Erickson in Janesville, and George Witman in Denver, and by their grandson Luke Erickson. A Memorial Service will be held on July 26, 2025, from 01:00 PM to 04:00 PM at Northfield United Methodist Church 1401 Maple Street, Northfield, Minnesota.