John L. Lanum Jr.

Beloved husband, uncle and father, John L. Lanum Jr., age 73, of Marengo, passed away unexpectedly Wednesday evening, December 3, 2025, at Marion General Hospital.
John was born in Mount Gilead, Ohio, on February 17, 1952, the son of the late John Sr. and Dorothy Lanum. He was the first baby boy to be born at Morrow County Hospital when they opened. He graduated from Mount Gilead High School in the Class of 1970.
Then, after an initial blind date, John married the love of his life, Patti L. Sheets on October 30, 1971. They shared over 54 wonderful years together, and in that time visited all 50 states, Canada, Mexico, South America, Central America and numerous Caribbean Islands. Many a summer was spent camping with family (his favorite pastime) and eating out at a favorite restaurant. Family and friends meant the world to John, he always put others first and was always one of the first to help out when he could.
John worked at HPM in Mount Gilead for 38 years from 1972 to 2003, starting out as a welder before moving to assembly, then became a machinist. During a layoff, he worked at Cooper-Bessemer and then went back to HPM where he worked as a foreman until they closed. He then worked at HTI in Galion for three years, also as a foreman. After working at Ariel Corporation in Mount Vernon as a machinist for 11 years, he retired in 2015.
In 2018, John and Patti took their dream vacation. They traveled 17,000 miles in 91 days across the country with their camper from Ohio to Alaska and back. They especially enjoyed seeing the numerous animals and taking over 2,000 pictures to share with their family and friends.
John is survived by his wife, Patti; sisters: Teresa (Jim) Bloomfield, Linda Miller, Cindy (Oliver) Craner; brother-in-law and sister-in-laws: Dorothy Sheets, Roger (Linda) Sheets; nieces and nephews: Terri (Douglas) Bowling, James Bloomfield, Kristen Morsie, Matthew Miller, Olivia Craner, Gail Craner, Kathy (Rick) Gardner, Steve (Joy) Sheets, Kerrie (Steve) Reinhard, Kristy (Joe) Erdy; great nieces and nephews: Loralai, Derek, Karley, Gavin, Xander, Paxton, Krodel, Karter, Olivia, Nathan, Nicole, Abigail, Elizabeth, Bryan (Mary), Sam, Zane, and Megan; great-great niece, to be born soon; as well as close friends, Betty Osborne, Judy and Ross McCoy, Gene Linkous and Loretta Gamble.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his son, Craig L. Lanum; brother-in-law, Raymond Sheets, and close friend Kenneth Osborne.
John's family will greet friends on December 17, 2025 from 1 - 3 PM at Snyder Funeral Homes, Mount Gilead Chapel, 67 N Main Street, Mount Gilead, OH 43338. A celebration of life service will begin at 3 PM. Burial will take place at Marengo Cemetery.
Memorial contributions, in lieu of flowers, if you so desire, can be made to the American Diabetes Foundation.
Snyder Funeral Homes of Mount Gilead are honored to serve John's family during this difficult time. Special memories and condolences can be shared with the family by visiting our website: snyderfuneralhomes.com