Arthur Earl Oldehoeft

November 2, 1935 – January 8, 2026

Arthur “Arch” Oldehoeft, 90, of Ames, Iowa, passed away peacefully into eternal life on January 8, 2026, at Bethany Manor after a lengthy battle with pulmonary fibrosis.

He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, educator, and pioneer in the early days of computer science. His life reflected curiosity, discipline, and a deep commitment to
service and excellence – qualities that were shaped from his earliest years.

Born on November 2, 1935, in Seward, Nebraska, he was the son of Walter and Elsie (Riggert) Oldehoeft. The fifth of six children, Arch grew up in several tight-knit rural Lutheran communities. His father served as his teacher from kindergarten through the eighth grade, a foundation that nurtured his lifelong love of learning. After the family moved from Kansas to Oklahoma, Arch attended public school for the first time, graduating from Perry High School in 1953. He went on to earn a BS in mathematics from Oklahoma A & M in 1957 and an MS in 1959 from Oklahoma State University.

A pivotal moment during his undergraduate studies came when a professor invited him to help program a new machine called a computer. That opportunity sparked a passion that shaped his entire professional future. Before earning his doctorate in Computer Science from Purdue University in 1970, Arch worked as a programmer for the Florida Research and Development Center of Pratt & Whitney in West Palm Beach, Florida, and for Northrup Aircraft Corporation in Hawthorne, California. While in California, a former professor recruited him to the Computing Center at Southern Illinois University. There he met Margie Vines, a student employee in the center. A ride in his beloved candy-apple red Corvette led to a marriage that lasted more than 60 years. They were married on August 29, 1965, at Jonesboro Baptist Church in Jonesboro, Illinois.

Purdue University was among the first stand-alone computer science departments in the nation, and Arch was proud to become the 22nd person to earn a PhD from the program. In 1970 he joined the newly formed Computer Science Department at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. During a period of 29 years in the department, he became Full Professor, served as Department Chair from 1988 to 2000, published numerous articles, taught specialized courses for IBM, coauthored a computer science textbook with colleagues and his brother Rodney (Department Chair at Colorado State University). Arch worked tirelessly, often late into the night, to keep pace with the rapidly evolving technology. Before he retired in 2000 as Professor Emeritus, Arch consulted with NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) for a year and had the rare opportunity to become acquainted with the inventor of the digital computer, Dr. John Vincent Atanasoff. Life had come full circle from programming one of the early computers in Oklahoma to giving a eulogy at the funeral of the computing pioneer of this age.

Beyond academia, Arch gave generously of his time. He was a Deacon at Collegiate Presbyterian Church and served in various leadership roles in the Ames Morning Rotary Club where he maintained a website and was a founding member. He also developed and maintained websites for Raising Readers in Story County and Bethany Manor while serving on their Foundation Board. He enjoyed playing bridge, reading about current events, watching sports, and traveling; was an Iowa State University basketball fanatic; and valued the friendships built through these activities.

Arch loved spending time with his family and those cherished times will be remembered by his wife, Margie; daughters Gretchen (Steven) Snyders of Missoula, Montana, and Kimberly Oldehoeft (Jeff Trow) of Sacramento, California; grandchildren Heath Trow and Isabel, Elias, Ezra, Sylvia Snyders; great-grandchildren Oliver and Iris Snyders; sister Elaine (Bob) VanValkenburg; sister-in-law Barbara (Roy) Oldehoeft; and many nieces and nephews.

Preceding him in death were his parents and four siblings: Rodney, Roy, Wilfred (Ruby), and Mildred (Wilbert) Eilrich.

A Memorial Service will be held at 12 noon on Monday, March 30, 2026, at the Collegiate Presbyterian Church, 159 Sheldon Avenue, Ames, Iowa, with a Celebration of Life following at 1 pm. A Graveside Service at 10:30 am at the Ames Municipal Cemetery is open to the public. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, 223 West Jackson Boulevard, Suite 350, Chicago, IL 60606-6974