John Smith

John H. “Jack” Smith, 76, of Blue Grass, Iowa, died Sunday, April 8, 2012 at his home.

A Memorial Service to celebrate his life will be held at 5:30 p.m., Thursday, April 12, 2012 at McGinnis-Chambers Funeral Home in Bettendorf. Visitation will be held from 4:30 p.m. until the time of the services on Thursday at the funeral home. Private burial services will be held in Blue Grass Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Buffalo Ambulance Service, the Blue Grass Fire Department or to Genesis Hospice.

John was born February 5, 1936 in Cordova, Illinois, the son of John & Mary (Durbin) Smith. On August 2, 1957 he was united in marriage to Mary Joe Waltz in Blue Grass.

John retired from Alcoa in 1998 after forty-three years of service. He enjoyed participating with the Boy Scouts of America while his sons were involved. He had a passion for the history of the old west, wars and mostly guns. In earlier years, he enjoyed hunting and fishing. John loved his family and enjoyed the time spent with them, especially his grandchildren.

Those left to honor his memory include his wife, Mary Joe; his daughter, Jacqueline Smith of Blue Grass; his sons and daughters-in-law, Dennis Smith, Scott Smith and David & Ronda Smith, all of Blue Grass and Jeffrey & Lynn Smith of Davenport; fourteen grandchildren; one great-grandson; his brother, Robert Smith of Mt. Carroll, Illinois; his sisters-in-law, Dorothy “Dot” Smith of Mt. Carroll, Norma Smith of Davenport and Diane Smith of Savanna, Illinois; his brother-in-law, Jim Thulen of Savanna; and twenty-four nieces and nephews.

In addition to his parents, John was preceded in death by his sisters, Luella Wakefield and Dorothy Thulen; his brothers, Ernest, Lenard, Jerold and James; his brother-in-law, Tony Wakefield and his sister-in-law, Harriet Smith.

Online condolences may be expressed to the family by visiting John’s obituary at www.McGinnis-Chambers.com.