Sam Hoff

It is with sadness and great peace that we announce the passing of Samuel Hoff on August 29, 2020 in the early morning hours. Sam, as he always liked to be called, went to be with his Lord and Savior after struggling for many years with Alzheimer/Dementia symptoms. Sam started his life as the youngest of 19 children in Fresno, California. Born the year of "The Great Depression" in 1929, he always loved the home of his youth and throughout his life enjoyed visiting his family of origin in Fresno. He enjoyed hiking and being outdoors with friends and family and frequented Yosemite on many occasions. After high school, like many young men his age, Sam spent a brief conscripted period of about 2 years in the US Army and left with a rank of Private First Class. Sam met his future wife Josephine Engle in his early twenties and was married in 1955. Sam spent his early years as a husband and father in the Los Angeles area. Always industrious, he held numerous sales and creative jobs before completing college at University of Southern California (USC) with a Bachelor's Degree in History and a high school teaching certificate. In the summer of 1970, Sam relocated his family to Morgan Hill. He then spent the bulk of his career in education at Live Oak High School, first as Vice Principal and later as Assistant Principal. Sam had a sweet tooth; many high-schoolers will remember visiting him in his office and got a cookie or sweet from his cookie jar. In 1985 Sam "The Lion" was not ready to retire and took a career change into financial planning and money management. During the next 30 years, Sam worked years in Los Gatos. He finally retired in Campbell, CA. Sam did have one driving passion through all of his life. a deep care about people. His favorite activity, outside of family and church activities, was volunteering as a Chaplain for Jail Ministries. From his early teenage life until his mandatory retirement from the Santa Clara County Chaplain Corps at the age of 85. Sam loved to serve. Through his 70 years of continuous service, there were dozens and dozens of men Sam helped counsel in those difficult dark hours in jail. It was a consistent joy for Sam to serve communion, as well as Thanksgiving and Christmas meals to those in jail. Sam is survived by his wife Josephine (65 years of marriage), his four children, ten grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren. There was a private burial service for immediate family only on September 2, 2020 at Los Gatos Memorial Park in San Jose, CA. Sam's largest passion was the Chaplain program. In lieu of other acknowledgments please send a contribution to www.cicministries.org or mail a check to CIC Ministries, PO Box 360068, Milpitas, CA 95036.

Published in Morgan Hill Times · December 31, 2020