John Eubanks

EUBANKS
JOHN DEWEY EUBANKS
March 5, 1946
December 22, 2013

Surrounded by his loving family, John Dewey Eubanks, 67, passed away peacefully and with great dignity into the arms of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on Sunday, December 22, 2013, in Davenport, IA. John fought lung cancer with the same humility, humor, strength, and motivation as he did throughout his whole life. He was a highly respected family member and steadfast friend to many. John was born on March 5, 1946, in Kingsville, Texas, near the famous King Ranch, where his maternal grandfather, John Harvey Yancey, served as a ranch foreman. John's father, Lewis Benton Eubanks of Clanton, Alabama, was stationed at the Kingsville Naval Air Station during World War II, where he met and married John's mother, Lorraine Yancey Eubanks. John's loving sister, Dr. Elizabeth Elaine Eubanks, was born in Kingsville 360 days after his birth. They were inseparable throughout their lives.

John and Liz grew up in San Antonio, Texas, on the Southside of town, where they went to Highland Hills Elementary School. John graduated from Thomas Nelson Page Junior High School in 1961, and graduated from Highlands High School in the Class of 1964. John is remembered by his classmates as a great guy who treated his friends with respect, dignity, and honor. Everybody loved Johnny. He went to Riverside Baptist Church, where he was baptized with his sister on October 5, 1957. After high school, John went to Texas A&I University (now Texas A&M at Kingsville). He excelled in his classes; however, he joined the Navy before he could finish his degree in Petroleum Engineering.

During his tour of duty in the Navy, John met Sharon Dodd in Davenport, IA, in January 1966. For both of them, it was "love at first sight!" They married on November 5, 1966, and had an awesome love, life, and marriage that most people can't even begin to imagine. They were each other's best friends. Along with marrying Sharon, John was blessed to become a member of the large, loving Dodd family. They wrapped their arms around him, pulled him into their families, and loved him as one of their own. After the Navy, John and Sharon returned to Davenport, IA, where they both joined Oscar Mayer. Johnny retired as a Crew Leader in 2003 after 30 years of service at Oscar Mayer. He was so loved by his co-workers at Oscar Mayer that on his last day, they used industrial strenth plastic wrap to tie him to a cart, so he couldn't leave.

From the time John was in Little League, he was an amazing athlete and dominated every sport he played. Through the years, John developed countless relationships and memories with all his bowling, golfing, Iowa Hawkeye-gamebound buddies. John was a huge fan of the Cubs, Dallas Cowboys and Iowa Hawkeyes. John was one-of-a-kind wonderful and had a very magnetic quality that drew people to him. He never met a stranger, always had something good to say, and he had a heart of pure gold.

John and his sister, Liz, remained close friends all the days of their lives. They took family vacations with each other to the Carribbean and to Destin, Florida. Recently, they celebrated an 8-day spectacular vacation to Club Med in Martinique, France. Surrounded by family, they celebrated John's life with laughter, stories, and memories of a life well lived. Johnny really enjoyed watching all the young people dance and loved to sneak in a kiss and a dance with the love of his life, Sharon, his faithful wife and best friend. Also on the trip was John's daughter Amy Eubanks and her friend Tom Walker; John's sister Liz and her husband Dr. Jeff A. Pyatte; Liz's daughter, Dr. Anna Wright Stowell, her son-in-law Christopher Stowell, and her grandson, Scott Alexander Stowell. Johnny enjoyed great happiness and health during the entire trip, which made his death 16 days later so shocking and so very hard to take. We join Sharon in lamenting "too soon, too soon." John, however, left his life to the Lord and prayed that he would be taken to heaven before the pain became unbearable. God answered his prayer.

My brother asked that all of you who are reading this do two things: (1) if you smoke, quit smoking immediately; and (2) if you do not know Jesus Christ as your personal savior, find a church, read the Bible, and become a Christian.

Those left to honor his memory include his loving wife of 47 years, Sharon; daughter Elizabeth Elaine Eubanks (Brett Schaapveld) of Nichols, IA; daughter Amy Eubanks-Donnelly of Winfield, IL; granddaughter Samantha (George) Boyd; granddaughter Steffany VanWinkle; and great grandchildren, Alex, Max and Isabelle, all of Pennsylvania; his sister Dr. Elizabeth Elaine Eubanks (Jeff) Pyatte of Dallas, TX; his niece, Anna Wright (Chris) Stowell and his great-nephew Scott Alexander Stowell of Dallas, TX; his mother-in-law Elladean Dodd; sister-in-law Nellie (Richard) Shipley, Unionville, MO; brothers-in-law Robert (Karen) Dodd, Warsaw, MO and Clayton (Betty) Dodd, Davenport, IA; plus 5 nieces and nephews whom he adored unconditionally. He was preceded in death by his parents, Lewis and Lorraine Eubanks, father-in-law Robert Dodd, and nephew Brandon Dodd.

Funeral services to celebrate the life of John D. Eubanks, 67, of Davenport, IA, will be 11:00 a.m. Monday, December 30, 2013, at the Halligan - McCabe - DeVries Funeral Home, 614 Main Street, Davenport, IA. There will be a visitation prior to the funeral services on Monday at the Funeral Home from 9:00 a.m. until the time of services. Burial will be in National Cemetery, Rock Island Arsenal.

Online remembrances and condolences may be expressed to the family by visiting www.hmdfuneralhome.com.