John was born in Corpus Christi, Texas on March 8, 1939.  He was raised in the "Heights" in Houston, Texas as a young child.  As a young man, he served honorably in the United States Air Force.  He married Beverly Larson and had 2 beautiful baby girls, Evelyn and Bonnie,  and 1 handsome little boy, Sammie who was not to be on this earth very long. Bonnie gave John 4 wonderful grandchildren: Jenniafur, Melody, Billy and Anna.  After John and Beverly divorced, John met and married Dena Hart and they had a beautiful daughter, Stacey, who also gave John 3 more wonderful granddaughters, Danielle, Gabrielle, and Alyssa, and a handsome grandson, Justin.  John retired from Diamond Shamrock in the year 2000 after working there for 20 years. Because he was not one to stay idle, he then went to work for Luther's Bar-b-que and worked there until 2004 until he was diagnosed with laryngeal cancer. He fought that very hard, and was cancer free until bladder cancer struck him in 2009.  John lost his fight on June 2, 2010. Anyone who knew John, knows that he loved to work on puzzles. He would get them for birthdays and Christmas and I think they were his favorite gifts of all. Anytime there was a party in the works, John did all the barbequing. His ribs were famous! He got such enjoyment from doing that.