Dennis A. Hohn, 80, passed away peacefully on August 12, 2026 at his home in Ottumwa, Iowa.
Dennis was born November 9, 1945, in Iowa City, Iowa. On January 10, 1946—a date our family lovingly celebrated as his “gotcha day”—he became the son of Glidden and Wilma (Paulsen) Hohn of Wheatland, Iowa. He was raised on a farm near Grand Mound with his older sister, Janet.
Dennis attended Welton Consolidated School through the 11th grade and graduated from Central Community High School in DeWitt. After attending Clinton Junior College for one year, he graduated in 1967 from Northeast Missouri State Teachers College in Kirksville, Missouri, now known as Truman State University.
Following graduation, Dennis taught for one year in the Ottumwa school system before joining the U.S. Army Security Agency. He trained as a Czech linguist at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California, and as a radio intercept operator at Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, Texas. He then spent two years stationed in a small village near the border of West Germany and what was then Czechoslovakia, working from a mountaintop post where he monitored and recorded Czech-language transmissions.
After completing his military service, Dennis returned to Ottumwa and taught at Washington Junior High School for two years. He continued his education and earned a master’s degree in history from Northeast Missouri State University in 1973. He later served two terms on a board at his alma mater, Truman State University.
Dennis eventually left teaching for a career in banking and investments. He was proud to have been among the early financial advisors at Edward Jones and became a limited partner in the firm in 1981. Throughout his 40 year career at Edward Jones, he served clients in 37 states and took on numerous leadership responsibilities. He was a mentor and recruiter, served on the firm’s hiring task force and its Washington, D.C., grassroots task force, and spent a period as regional leader for offices throughout the eastern third of Iowa. Of his many professional roles, he especially enjoyed the opportunity to guide and support other financial advisors.
Dennis’s commitment to service extended far beyond his professional life. He served as president of the Ottumwa Chamber of Commerce and was a founding member and six-year president of Ottumwa Progress Incorporated. He also served as vice president of Ottumwa Mainstreet, spent 12 years as a member of the Ottumwa Hospital Foundation, and was an early member of the Ottumwa Citizens Advisory Board. He served on the board of the Ottumwa Area Economic Development Corporation and completed six terms on the Session of First Presbyterian Church.
Dennis was also involved in the initial and subsequent efforts to develop the Bridge View Center. He helped raise more than $1 million for its construction and later capital needs. He believed deeply in Ottumwa and generously supported many of the projects and organizations that strengthened the community he called home.
While attending summer school at the University of the Americas in Mexico City in 1968, Dennis met Cristina Palacios. They married in Mexico City in 1972 and later divorced. They had three daughters: Monika (Darin) Duke of Salem, Oregon; Emilie (Will) Pohlman of Windsor Heights, Iowa; and Jessica (Bronk) Harms of Littleton, Colorado.
Dennis was a proud grandfather to Lauren and Morgan Duke, Blythe and Cash Pohlman, and Henry and Willa Harms.
In 2016, Dennis married Suann Marshall, and the family grew to include her children: Tammy (Jeff) Harper of Kansas City, Missouri; Bryan Marshall of Keokuk, Iowa; and Tony (Rachel) Marshall of Quincy, Illinois. His family also grew to include five step-grandchildren: Carrie Lee, Aaron and Cameron Harper, and Savannah and Sierra Marshall, as well as two step-great-grandchildren.
Some of our fondest memories of Dad are from the many years he spent coaching girls’ softball. One particularly memorable season found all three of his daughters playing on three different teams. Somehow, he continued to show up, encourage us, and make each of us feel supported.
Dennis joined Toastmasters in 1975 and remained involved for five years. He became a Rotarian in 1978 and continued as a member for the rest of his life. Whether through his work, civic leadership, church involvement, or personal generosity, Dennis believed in giving back.
His philanthropic legacy will continue through the Dennis A. Hohn Charitable Foundation, which will support ten area organizations that were important to him.
To us, his daughters, Dad’s greatest legacy cannot be measured by the titles he held, the organizations he led, or the money he helped raise. It can be found in the example he set through service, generosity, mentoring, and love. He believed it was better to give than to receive—and that the more a person gave, the more came back in love, empathy, and understanding.
Dad often reminded us that we make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.
Dennis was a giver. That is how we will remember him.
Dennis is survived by his wife, Suann; his daughters and sons-in-law, Monika and Darin Duke, Emilie and Will Pohlman, and Jessica and Bronk Harms; his stepchildren, Tammy and Jeff Harper, Bryan Marshall, and Tony and Rachel Marshall; six grandchildren; five step-grandchildren; two step-great-grandchildren; his sister, Janet Doss of Louisville, Kentucky; his niece, Kim Doss; and his nephews, Todd, Troy, and Scott Doss.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Glidden and Wilma Hohn.
Visitation will be open after 11 a.m. Thursday August 20th at Reece Funeral Home with his family present to greet friends from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday.
Funeral services will be 10:30 a.m. Friday August 21st at First Presbyterian Church with Pastor Nancy Cameron officiating. Military honors will be conducted by O.B. Nelson Post #3 American Legion and Walter B. Schafer Post #775 Veterans of Foreign Wars. Private inurnment will be at a later date in Lost Nation Cemetery near Maquoketa next to his parents.
Memorials may be made to First Presbyterian Church or American Home Finding Association.
