Larry William Goodman, 70, longtime Minot educator, died Thursday, December 7, 2017.

Larry was born October 28, 1947 in Minot, North Dakota, the son of Kris and Fern (Paige) Goodman. He married Diana Hager on August 17, 1968 and they raised their three children (Todd, Kris, & Shannon) in Minot.

Larry graduated with a degree in Secondary Mathematics Education from Minot State College in 1969 and later received his Masters Degree in Mathematics Education at Minot State College. He taught in New Salem, ND but in 1970, Larry returned to Minot and spent the next 33 years teaching at Central Campus. Upon "retiring" in 2000 Larry moved over to Minot State University where for the next 12 years he taught in both the undergraduate and graduate programs. He retired for real in 2015. Larry also worked construction for a few years during the summer months.

During his teaching career Larry taught and inspired over 7,000 students, was a wrestling coach (New Salem), started the girls' volleyball program in Minot and served as its head coach for 13 years. He was head of the math department at Central Campus, and held many positions for the Minot Education Association. In 1974 Larry was recognized as an Outstanding Secondary Educator of America. Larry also helped the football boosters by running parking at the State Fair.

Larry was an active member of Christ Lutheran Church serving on the church council and as a team lead for the ushers as well as a communion minister. Larry worked on several Habitat for Humanity projects and transported countless batches of klube to Norsk Hostfest.

Larry loved the outdoors spending countless hours walking the dog, taking the grandkids to the park and pool. Many family hours were spent working the gardens both in and south of Minot. It was not uncommon to pull in several hundred pounds of vegetables each year.

Larry was preceded in death by his parents. He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Diana Goodman, Minot; children, Todd Goodman, Fargo, Kris (Jen) Goodman, Velva and Shannon Ruzic (Brian White), of Minot; grandchildren, Rachel, Katherine, Caroline and Allen Goodman; Adriana and Colin Ruzic; sister, Lana (Bill) O'Brien, SD.

Celebration of Life service : Thursday, December 14, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. in Christ Lutheran Church.
** While teaching, Larry was famous for wearing black on test days. In Larry's honor, the family requests all to wear black as we send him for his final exam. **
Visitation: Wednesday, December 13th from 3:00-6:00 p.m. in the Thomas Family Funeral Home, Minot.