The Lord did not create a better person/friend than John. His stories about his faith and the walk he took with Him were always present. The kindness that flowed from his heart effected so many. The many laughs that we had at the coffee shop. The many breakfasts that we shared together. The basketball games we went to. I remember one playoff basketball game in Mansfield and it was a beautiful warm winter night. There were four of us that went in his truck, John bought us pizza, and we ate it on his tailgate after the game. I loved his stories about being a bouncer in his younger days. I will miss sitting on his front porch watching the parades, how everyone came up to him to shake his big hands. I saw how tired he was after he came home after a long truck run. We still laughed many weeks ago about how we sent flowers to a friend’s wife on her birthday and how our friend got the credit. We laughed at the time Gene got a Jeff Gordon pop machine. John gave money to help buy tires for a good friend. John always “donated” to the 50/50 tickets at the games, and he finally won once during all those years (I think he donated back the winnings to the Scholarship fund). When umpiring first base at a little league game, John would call time out to pat the back of a very small player and tell him some pointers of what he should have done (a coach umpire)! However, it was his attitude toward life that was his trademark. He always spoke of the Lord in every conversation. I will dearly miss John but someday, we will laugh together again soon.
