MIDDLETON - James Dobbin McNatt, age 88, of Middleton, passed away on Saturday, August 15, 2026, at Agrace HospiceCare following a brief inpatient stay for complications related to a recent emergency procedure. He was born on September 16, 1937, in Wadesboro, N.C., the son of John and Sarah (Brown) McNatt who lived in nearby Morven.

Dobbin graduated from North Carolina State University with honors with a BS in Wood Technology in 1959. Throughout college he was an avid soccer player. He went on to earn his master’s degree from Michigan State in 1961, also in Wood Technology. Dobbin worked a summer job at the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, WI in 1961 and then began working there full time in 1962. He stayed there over 3 decades and then retired in May of 1994. Throughout his career, Dobbin made many significant contributions to the field and took great pride in his work.

On August 3, 1963, Dobbin married Myrna Faye Johnson in the Washington Prairie Lutheran Church outside Decorah, IA. Together, they built a life filled with family, adventure, and a love of the outdoors. Camping, canoeing and hiking were some of their favorite activities and the basis of most of their trips abroad. Dobbin and Myrna were active members of the Madison Christian Community Church for several decades and cherished the friendships and community they found there.

Dobbin led an active and adventurous life. Along with Jose Asturias of Monona, WI, he co-established the Monona Soccer Club and played with them until 1970. He enjoyed running and completed over a dozen marathons, including the Boston Marathon in 1979 and the all-uphill Grandfather Mountain Marathon in the Blue Ridge Mountains in 1980. He finished 20 consecutive Syttende Mai 20-mile races and participated in several duathlons which combined running and bicycling. Dobbin rode 480 miles on his bike in the RAGBRAI across Iowa state in 1984 and 500 miles in the first annual GRABRAWR tour along the Wisconsin River. Dobbin continued bike racing up until just this past month making him a rider for over 60 years. Being the only participant in his age group, he won first place in the age category every time.

Dobbin was an accomplished hiker who almost finished the Appalachian Trail all by himself. They called him “Hickory Stick” on the trail because he carved his walking staff from a hickory tree growing near the cabin he and Myrna owned. He always wanted to complete the entire trail, but after a potentially fatal wasp attack, he and Myrna decided he had had enough of that particular adventure. In his travels with Myrna and on many other trails, he walked over 2,000 miles with the same walking stick.

Dobbin is survived by his wife, Myrna; daughter, Susan (John) Hilgers; sons, Steven McNatt and Terrence (Sue) McNatt; and grandchildren, Carson McNatt, Lucy McNatt, Kyler McNatt, Sidney McNatt and brothers, Ralph McNatt and Ed McNatt. He was preceded in death by his parents, John and Sarah; sister, Katherine (Gary) Millwood and sisters-in-law, Notra McNatt and Caroline McNatt.

A memorial service will be held at MADISON CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY CHURCH, 7118 Old Sauk Road, at 2 p.m. on Thursday, September 10, 2026. A visitation will be held at the church from 1 p.m. until the time of the service on Thursday.

Memorials may be made to The American Cancer Society or The Alzheimer’s Association. Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

Gunderson West
Funeral & Cremation Care
7435 University Ave.
(608) 831-6761

Dobbin McNatt

September 16, 1937 - August 15, 2026

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