John Philipp Graf, who was the second-longest serving publisher of the Galesville Republican, was born October 22, 1950, to Philipp and Anna (Pfister) Graf, who lived near Hokah, Minn. He grew up near Appleton and graduated in 1968 from Hortonville High School. In 1972, John earned his degree in mass communications from UW-Stevens Point.
John married Lois Hoftizer in Madison on May 5, 1979. They had six children — Beth, Susanne, Philipp, Martha, Lydia and Markus — and seven grandchildren.
Newspapering was John’s lifelong career. He worked in a variety of roles, including as a reporter, photographer, typesetter, proofreader, graphic designer, publisher and owner. In 1985, he purchased the Galesville Republican weekly newspaper, where he served as owner and publisher for 25 years.
Graf had a passion for providing local news to his local communities and was actively involved in the Galesville Chamber of Commerce, serving several terms as president. He sold the newspaper in 2011 to News Publishing Co., which merged it with the Whitehall Times and Arcadia News-Leader to form the Trempealeau County Times. After retirement, Graf served six years as Galesville’s mayor.
John died Friday, June 5, 2020, at his home in Galesville. He was 69.
