John M. Wrenn

1922 - 2021

John M. Wrenn
Born: January 7, 1922
Died: October 4, 2021
John M. Wrenn, 99, of Sarasota FL passed away on Oct. 4, 2021, with his loving wife and family by his side.
John was born in Chicago, IL on Jan. 7, 1922. After high school, John attended Shurtleff College before enlisting in the Army in April of 1943. He trained as a medic and saw action at the Battle of the Bulge and then served with the occupation forces in Japan. Returning home John attended the University of Illinois and played football with the 1946-47 team which played and won the Rose Bowl Championship. After graduation, John accepted the position of teacher and head coach at East Moline high school while earning his Master's degree. In 1960 he moved to DeKalb, IL, and became the line coach for Northern Illinois University. John also served as coach for the Wrestling and Tennis teams at NIU. He retired in 1976 and was later recognized at NIU's Athletic Hall of Fame.
John married Bette Withey Evensen in 1974 and at John's retirement, they moved to Sarasota where they enjoyed traveling the world, spending time with family and their many friends. In 1990 John and Bette were flown to East Moline by the Alumni group for a wonderful weekend in recognition of the years he spent teaching and coaching in the Quad Cities.
He was preceded in death by his parents William P and Mary (Barrett) Wrenn, siblings William, Leo, and Mary (William) Malone, his first wife, Jean Duncan-Good & stepdaughter, Sandra (Evensen) Dulin.
John is survived by his wife of 47 years, Bette; brother Lawrence; daughter Richey (Gary) Krahenbuhl of Tempe AZ; son John Jr. (Cindy) of Las Vegas NV; grandchildren Lisa (Lance) Harrington of Sugar Hill, GA; Julie (Carey) Truelick of Tempe AZ; Kevin (Allison) Krahenbuhl of Murfreesboro TN; Mike (Allison) Krahenbuhl of Scottsdale AZ; Jason (Cheryl) Wrenn of Reseda, CA, and Andrea (Aaron) Dalzell of Las Vegas NV; 11 great-grandchildren; one great-great-grandchild; nephews and nieces; two stepchildren Mark (Lynn) Evensen of Sarasota FL, Theresa (Tommy) Adkins of Dayton OH, step-granddaughters Catherine (Jesse) Cocozza of Sarasota FL, Stephanie and David Zalich of Tampa FL, and four step-great-grandchildren: Mason & Molly Cocozza and Caden & Caleb Zalich.
A Celebration of Life will be held at Sarasota National Cemetery on Jan.7, 2022, on what would have been John's 100th birthday. In lieu of flowers, scholarship donations may be made to the Northern Illinois University Foundation, PO Box 746, DeKalb IL 60115. Please make the check out to the foundation and add John Wrenn Football Scholarship in the memo. The family would like to thank the staff at SMH Nursing & Rehab Center and the staff at Tidewell Hospice of Sarasota for their love and care of John during his stay.