John Rohner

There is no way to easily sum up the 97 years of a life such as John's; his legacy and impact on this world stretch far beyond the many lives he touched personally. As a teacher, a World War II Marine veteran, as an artist--who engraved, painted, sculpted and made silver jewelry--as a naturalist and outdoorsman, gun enthusiast, collector of Native American and African art, not to mention as a patriarch of a large, loving family, John's influence will be felt and treasured for many generations. John was born in Iowa City, Iowa, to Frank and Filomena (nee Plaza de Monreal) Rohner. As a youngster hunting and fishing along the banks of the Iowa River, he developed a lifelong love of nature and an avid interest in guns. He studied for two years at Saint Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa, before heading to Alaska to work on the ALCAN highway. In 1943, he worked for Boeing in Seattle, with a plan to return to Alaska as a junior airport manager. He discovered he didn't like getting up at 4 a.m. to catch the bus to class, and decided to do something easier, so he enlisted in the Marines, acknowledging later that, "Maybe it wasn't my most brilliant moment." In June of 1944, he was with the first wave of marines to land on Saipan in the South Pacific. He was awarded two Purple Hearts and served until the end of the war. Although he rarely talked about his war experience, it clearly took its toll, affecting him until his passing. After the war he earned a BA in Zoology and an MA in Museology (Museum Studies) at the University of Iowa. While at Iowa, he was the number-two shooter on the rifle team that won the Big Ten Championship and earned second place in the 1947 NCAA Championship. He spent his college-year summers from 1946-1950 working for the U.S. Forest Service in Idaho, patrolling the middle fork of the Salmon River. He treasured that time, living in a cabin with only his horse and his dog for company. Hudson's Bay area was another of his cherished hunting, fishing and specimen-collecting stomping grounds. In 1955 he married Dorothy Dvorsky, the girl next door, and before long, the children started to arrive. He taught at the University of Iowa, and on the side, he began engraving firearms as a hobby. In 1962 John moved his growing family to Boulder to become curator at the University of Colorado's Museum of Natural History. While at CU, he developed a museum training program geared to train indigenous peoples to set up museums in their communities to preserve and maintain their arts and cultural artifacts. For many years he was an active member of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church and school. During the early Boulder years, he served as an official measurer for the Boone and Crockett Club. The life of his family was enriched when John welcomed his students, many of whom were sorely missing their tribal communities, to a meal and/or a bed at the Rohner home in Sunshine Canyon. After assisting some of his students with the rehabilitation of the Saint Joseph's Museum on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, John formed a close friendship with medicine man, Peter Catches, Sr., who gave John the name, "Mázaskazi Mató," which means "Golden Grizzly Bear" in Lakota. John was known in some circles as, "The Fastest Trader in the West," due to the way his "collectables" were often traded off for something just a bit more valued or sold to pay school tuition or the mortgage. In the world of firearm engraving, he is legendary; obsessed with gun engraving from an early age, he co-invented the Gravermeister-a power-assisted engraving machine that revolutionized the art of metal engraving. Along with his brother-in-law, Don Glaser, he formed the GRS Corporation in Boulder in 1965. John was a charter member of the Firearms Engravers Guild of America and was an active engraver until he was nearly 90, when his eyesight finally failed him. From 1997 until 2012 John lived in Asheville, North Carolina, where Dorothy was teaching at the Asheville campus of UNC. He made a whole new circle of friends and learned what it was to be the "housewife" as he cooked meals for Dorothy and friends. They returned to Boulder, and in 2015 moved to the Carillon forming many new and precious friendships. Those who knew John will never forget his colorful way with language and his great, sometimes inscrutable sense of humor. Many a dinner guest left his table puzzled after he exclaimed, "If you think I'm stupid, you oughta see my brother; he walks like this!" - followed by a bent-over John marching around the table. Hours, days, or even years later they would realize "stupid" was "stooped". When faced with an unpleasant task, or a someone he wasn't partial to, he harkened back to vivid personal experience saying things like, "I'd sooner hold a horse in the rain," or "She's 90 miles of bad road." And what a storyteller; his vast and varied experiences gave him plenty of material. Along with a love of nature and creativity, he imbued his seven children with a strong sense of independence and a willingness to question authority. As they headed to school he'd say, "Have courage," urging them to stand up to peer pressure. He led by example with generosity and a strong compass for fairness. He died peacefully in the Sunshine Canyon home he built back in 1962. John is survived by his seven children, Teresa Elliott (David), Hans Rohner (Mary Jo Brodzik), Lisa Schafer (William), Filomena Kaehler (Ralph), Dorothia Rohner (Homer Caton), Tristana Rogers (Mark), and Magdalena Acuña (David); 14 grandchildren, and 21 great-grandchildren; two of his sisters Filomena Winegardener, and Teresa Kopel. He is preceded in death by his wife, Dorothy, his parents, three brothers Frank, Edward, and William, and his sister, Mary Glaser. Funeral service will be announced when the pandemic allows. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Native American Rights Fund (narf.org) or Tru Community Care Hospice (trucare.org). To share memories of John visit jrrohner-memories.info.