John "Jack" Dreger

John W. “Jack” Dreger, 88, of Davenport, Iowa passed away on Thursday, October 14, 2021, at the Clarissa C. Cook Hospice House, Bettendorf.

A private family graveside service will be held at the Rock Island Arsenal National Cemetery.  Online donations may be to Clarissa C. Cook Hospice House, Bettendorf at https://give.genesishealth.com/hospice or by mailing to 2546 Tech Dr, Bettendorf, IA 52722 in care of John Dreger.

Jack was born on June 10, 1933 in Kitchner, Ontario, Canada, the son of Harry Carl and Florence (Dyckman) Dreger.  He served in the U.S. Navy and was honorably discharged in 1954.  On August 26, 1961 he was united in marriage to Maryellen Nennert in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  Jack attended Marquette University and graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1963.  In his earlier years, he was employed by Allis Chalmers at Milwaukee, WI, and General Dynamics in San Diego, CA.  He later worked the Rock Island Arsenal in the Army material command prior to his retirement in 1993. Jack and Maryellen also owned and operated Maryellen’s Ceramics in Savanna, Illinois.  In his spare time, Jack was an active volunteer at CASI, where he took care of cleaning the greenware for ceramics.

Jack had a long time passion and hobby, carving unique masterpieces of his love for eagles and other animals. All of his pieces were carved from one piece of wood and a pocket knife. He started this hobby at 12 years of age.

Those left to honor his memory are his wife of 60 years, Maryellen Dreger of Davenport; daughter, Joellen (Mark) Sperfslage of Bettendorf; son, Kurt (LueAnn) Dreger of Clinton, Iowa; two grandchildren, Megan (Chris) Osborne and Cameron Dreger; and three great-grandchildren, Hadley, Caden and Holland Osbourne; and brother, Harry (Masai) Dreger of Grand Rapids, Wisconsin.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Online condolences may be shared at www.McGinnis-Chambers.com.