John Peter Winjum

John Peter Winjum

January 10, 2022

Whether you knew him as JP, Jack, Papa JP, or some other name, there is one thing for sure; he was a wonderful family man and inventor. John Peter Winjum was born at the end of the great depression and the beginning of WWII in 1939, but his childhood and teen years were spent growing up in the post war boom with his 5 siblings and widowed mother. Jack was there for the birth of Rock and Roll and the apex of being a "rebel without a cause" when he graduated from Watertown, South Dakota H.S. in 1957.

Jack was a man of his time. He loved to rebuild cars, dance the jitterbug, and he even worked as a Johnny Lightning type gas station attendant. He felt that it was his duty to join the military, even though the country was at peace; he wanted to be with the best - so he joined the US Marine Corps. He was one of the first Marine classes to be sent to 29 Palms and was part of the 155-gun battalion. The base had been open for less than 5 years, and Jack moved up the ranks rather quickly with his ingenuity and skill in munitions. He was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps and went back to the Midwest to Chamberlain, South Dakota.

Jack ran an ice cream store with his older brother Robert in Chamberlain, and that is where he met a nursing student, and it was love at first sight. He followed Lois Joan Schmidt to her new nursing job in California. He went to barber school on the west coast and worked with his other brother Mel as a barber. Jack married the love of his life Lois in Long Beach, CA in 1962.

Jack left the barber shop in California and moved with Lois to a suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota where they raised their four boys. Throughout this time, Jack had 3 barber shops and was a stockbroker, but it wasn't until 1972 that he found his true calling in the optical business. Jack moved the family to Indianola, Iowa at the urging of his brother Ken, and opened an optical surfacing lab, which puts the prescription into uncut lenses, called Midwest Uncuts. It was the first and only lab of its kind. His brother Mel was also in the optical business in Iowa.

Throughout the years in the optical industry, Jack invented new techniques that the entire industry adapted. He was a pioneer in his field. He became known around the world in the optical industry as the man who could get anything done. In 1990, Midwest expanded its operations into Chicago. In the late '90s, Jack and Lois decided to enjoy their later years and sold the business to NovaMed, whose CEO at the time was his oldest son, Steve.

Jack and Lois retired to Texas, but when Lois passed away a few years later after a valiant fight with cancer, Jack also lost his oldest son Steve three months later. The grief-stricken family pulled together tightly and have been supportive of each other ever since. Jack moved to Lincoln, Nebraska near his son, Doug. Jack enjoyed traveling around the country visiting with his other two sons Greg and Joe. What he enjoyed most was family dinners with his kids and many grandchildren.

Jack stayed up with the times by trading, and his favorite thing to do was swim almost every day with his aquarobics group. Jack had lived through so much and had many life lessons to pass on. He loved helping people troubleshoot their problems and all his family came to him for the truth and a straight answer. In Lincoln, he became involved in two charities that really help the communities they serve: Friendship Home and People's City Mission.

Jack is survived and will be deeply missed by three sons: Douglas (Laura), Gregory (Laura), and Joseph; daughter-in-law: Janie Khoury; siblings: Melvin, Ken, and Marvis; numerous nieces and nephews; and grandchildren: Ava, Nicholas, Ella, Erica, Emma, and Hannah. He is preceded in death by parents: Ida and Martin; wife: Lois; son: Stephen; and brothers: Robert and Francis.

Funeral Mass: 10:30 a.m. Wednesday (1-19-22) St. Francis of the Assisi, 15050 Wolf Road, Orland Park, IL. Burial in Queen of Heaven Cemetery, Hillside, IL with military graveside rites. Livestream available just prior to the mass at www.sfaorland.org Visitation from 4-7 p.m. Tuesday (1-18-22) Robert J. Sheehy and Sons Funeral Home, 9000 W. 151st Street, Orland Park, IL. Memorials in lieu of flowers to the Friendship Home, friendshiphome.org or the People's City Mission, pcmlincoln.org Condolences online at roperandsons.com