John Alton Hebard

John Alton Hebard died unexpectedly August 26,2025 as he and Dorothy were returning from vacationing with friends. John was born May 20,1963 in Roseburg, OR to Kirk(Corky) and Donna Hebard.

John’s early years were spent in Oregon, enjoying weekend adventures at grandma and grandpa’s house and family deer hunting each fall. At age 7, his family made the life-changing move to Alaska—a place that quickly became his forever home. Growing up in Alaska, John embraced everything the northern life had to offer. A dedicated athlete, he played hockey, baseball, and football throughout his youth and later developed an interest in racing road bikes. Never one to seek the spotlight, he played not for personal glory but for the success of the team. Whether it was looking to pass when others would shoot or rallying teammates behind the scenes, his selfless spirit defined his sportsmanship. Outside of organized sports, he could be found deep in neighborhood games of wiffle ball, nerf football, and street hockey or fishing for grayling on the Chena across the street from his childhood home. As the oldest son of three boys, John was a gentle giant in the eyes of his younger brothers Jeff and Kyle. Always there to pick you back up when life put you in your place and offer a few words of wisdom to help navigate the situation next time. They shared many great family moments playing stick hockey in the basement, racing hot wheels and slot cars, or just lounging around the house watching sports on tv.

From a very early age John was a veracious reader, a passion which sparked his interests in world history and political science. Those interests led him to be a very curious and dedicated student. He attended Nordale and Denali Elementary Schools, Ryan Junior High, and Lathrop High School, where he balanced academics and athletics with quiet determination. His passion for hockey continued throughout high school, but it never came at the expense of hard work and integrity. He went on to attend the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where he made friendships that would last a lifetime. Among them, the legendary "Fourth Floor Moore Hall" crew—a group bound by laughter, loyalty, and a few too many shenanigans. Having been gifted with a strong thinking mind John enjoyed the intricacies of international policies and interaction so studied Political Science in college as well as participating in Model United Nations at a national level and playing hockey,

John met his wife Dorothy as his college days were wrapping up and both agreed they wanted to commit to marriage and a joy-filled life together. They married in Fairbanks and within weeks moved to Vancouver WA for work. Unsure what type of work would appeal long term, John became a licensed financial advisor. Within a year he determined that while very interesting, it wasn’t his dream job, so began searching and contemplating again, then took a job with a small sporting goods store chain doing purchasing, contracting and accounting. This was more him!

After five years and much discussion it was time to move “home”. They packed up and drove north. John was quickly hired at FMH doing surgical inventory and purchasing. After a couple of years he applied for and accepted a buyer position at UAF. Here he was content and thrived. Over the next 28 years John acquired professional licenses and experience as he moved up the ladder to attain the Chief Procurement of UA systems title. End of fiscal year 2023 was John’s retirement date. Although he worked on many interesting and challenging projects, the one he enjoyed the most was the build of the Sikuliaq icebreaker. Many trips internationally and within the lower 48 occupied those years. John found the detailed requirements of contracting and purchasing for the build fascinating as he learned so very many things.

After eight years of coupledom John and Dorothy were blessed through the adoption of Jacob. Three years later they were again blessed with the addition of Ruth. To keep the pattern, once again after three years they were blessed with Isaiah. John loved being with and around his kids. Whether playing, reading, doing homework, watching TV and movies, supervising or napping(always the favorite) he wanted to be with them. He watched and coached hockey, basketball, and soccer for all three throughout the years. John was a definite sports nut.

John retired at the right time to spend a couple work free years with his grandson Xzavier, who shared John’s love of vanilla ice cream and reading.