John Lippolis

Livestream link to John's funeral service, https://youtube.com/live/CAeeHOgpHqY
John Daniel Lippolis passed away on August 26, 2023 in Rochester, MN, surrounded by his loving and devoted family.
Born in Boise, Idaho on February 29, 1964 to Pat and Daniel Lippolis, John spent much of his childhood and adolescence in Milwaukie, Oregon. The oldest of two kids, John enjoyed camping and hiking from a young age. Later John attended Rex Putnam High School, graduating in 1982. While in high school, John discovered two, of many, life-long loves: music and science. He actively participated in his high school choir and enjoyed singing, a skill he carried into adulthood. In addition to choir, he completed a health sciences program that deepened his desire to know the "why" of the surrounding world. This latter experience led to further study and an eventual career in the sciences.
After high school graduation John attended Brigham Young University (Provo, UT) to obtain a degree in microbiology. While at BYU, John found another life-long love, his eventual wife, Lea Frances Tucker. The two married in 1988, moving that same year to Hershey, PA, where John pursued a PhD in immunology at Penn State College of Medicine, eventually graduating in 1994. While in graduate school, John eschewed flashcard learning, foregoing memorization in favor of deep understanding instead. He was a consummate scholar.
His scholastic achievements continued with a postdoc at the University of Virginia (1994-1999) and as managing director of the NIAID Tetramer Core Facility in Atlanta, Georgia (1999-2002). He and Lea finally settled in Ames, IA where John worked with the United States Department of Agriculture as a prominent scientist in the field of ruminant disease and immunology. Though he had never worked with animals before, John thrived in his new post and genuinely cared about his cows.
In September of 2021, John was diagnosed with cancer, the illness that eventually took his life. For John, cancer was a transformative experience, bringing a greater closeness to his family and a spiritual renewal. A life-long member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, John relied on Christ's strength and grace to uphold him.
If the mark of a great man is how he's viewed by his family and friends, John departed this life excelling. Those that loved him most valued his humor and wit, his desire for knowledge, and his supportive nature. He is remembered for his love of a good book (even Tolkien's esoteric The Silmarillion) or a classic John Wayne movie, his Italian cooking and smoked meats, his feigned indifference to the family cats, his recent hobbies of woodworking and photography, and the service he provided his church and broader community.
But above all this, John was a deeply devoted, protective husband and father to Lea and their four children (Nora, Julia, Aria, and Evan). His favorite moments were spending time with his beloved family, whether it was hiking in Glacier National Park or enjoying the understated closeness of quietly reading side by side. Though he often showed love in dad jokes and goofiness, he also enjoyed surprises and the just-right gift. Once, after adamantly opposing a cat Lea wanted, he smuggled a gift-wrapped box (complete with air holes, food, water, and, yes, a cat) on the long drive from their house to Lea's family, just so she could open it Christmas morning.
He was a man of integrity. John valued doing right by his family and worked diligently to become someone they could sincerely love and admire. Even in passing, his greatest concern was how his family would fare, not what would happen to him.
John is survived, mourned, missed, remembered, and loved by his wife, Lea, and their four children; his mother, Pat Lippolis; his sister Stacie Smith, and countless friends and colleagues.