John Daniel Tippetts

John Daniel Tippetts, 51, tragically passed away on a flight from Vietnam to Shanghai, China, on Friday, October 17, 2025. It was a fitting departure for a man whose life was a tapestry of adventure, curiosity, and boundless love for the world and its people.

John was born on December 2, 1973, to Daniel Isaac Tippetts and Vickie Lynn Tippetts. He was the second of six children. He always claimed he and his older sister, Stacy, were adopted, because they were the only two redheads in a family of blondes. He was always the spark of life in his family and adventure followed him everywhere. Even as a child, he loved to roam and sought after the next adventure over the next hill. He died how he lived- always looking for the next story in his eventful, experience-filled life.

John was raised in Lovell. The family moved around a few times, but the most memories were made when the family moved into a new house that our father, Dan, built about a mile from Lovell Lake. John's adventures in the country were endless and if you knew John at all, you probably heard multiple stories of his escapades. From "fishing" in Lovell Lake, to skinny dipping in rank, swampy ponds, to tearing up the starter in his sister's car trying to "jump" it all the way home. Some of his most engaging stories were the "Ring of Fire" or formulas he cooked up in Dad's garage or riding a friend's old Shetland pony. He could entertain you for hours with stories from his childhood with his cousins and his siblings. He was always the life of any party and loved to be the main entertainment at any gathering.

John went to school in Lovell. While growing up, he was always the skinny little redhead in his class and one day, one of his friends called him Scrawny Johnny. It was a name that stuck throughout his life and was usually shortened to Scrawny or Scrawn. His friends in China never called him that. They called him Johnny. He would usually answer to just about anything, though, as our grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins all called him JD.

After graduating from high school, John went on his mission to Taiwan, where he developed a love of the Chinese language and the Chinese people. When he got back from his mission, he went to Utah Valley and then BYU and majored in Chinese and International Business. After living in Utah for a while, he moved back to Taiwan and taught English to schoolchildren there for a few years. He moved back to the states for a time and then made the move to mainland China. He lived for about 22 years in Shanghai and while there, absorbed the language and culture of China. He could speak the language like a native and immersed himself in learning to read Chinese. He would often be mistaken on the phone for a Chinese native because he spoke it so well. One of his favorite things was to go to a Chinese restaurant in the US and listen to the waitstaff speak in Chinese. If they started to say bad things about someone in the restaurant, he loved to speak up in their language and watch the looks on their faces. No one expected a tall, skinny redhead to be able to understand what they were saying!

John's adventurous life took him to many countries around the world. He visited almost every southeast Asian country, with Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines, and Laos being his favorites. Taiwan and China, however, were his special places and he made many friends from all over the world while living in Shanghai- Hmong, Korean, Japanese, Spanish, Danish, Catalonian, English, Italian, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, German, French, Irish, South African, Australian, Iranian, Kazakhstani, Mongolian, and Russian. He believed in approaching people with an attitude of learning rather than teaching or preaching. He truly believed all had something to teach him and helped make him a better person.

After his father passed in 2021, John came home and decided to make his home base in Cowley. Since it was during the pandemic, John was unable to get back into China right away and so he spent many months in Thailand, waiting to gain entry back into China so he could finish out his work contract and move home. Once he finished his work and traveled a bit in southeast Asia, he was able to move back to Cowley in 2023. Even though he loved his Cowley home, he still traveled back and forth to southeast Asia, mostly for fun and to escape the cold Wyoming winters but decided to start his own consulting business. He would travel to shows to try and market himself. He met his latest employer at a show in Las Vegas and agreed to help him set up his manufacturing plant in Vietnam. John had his home base in Cowley but was living in Vietnam temporarily at the time of his death.

John was a soul who thrived on learning, whether through the pages of a book, the strings of his guitar, or the stories shared by people he met. His laughter was infectious, his curiosity boundless, and his ability to connect with others was unparalleled. He found joy in the simple pleasures- strumming melodies, diving into literature, and engaging in heartfelt conversations that left everyone he met feeling seen and valued.

John is survived by his mother, Vickie Tippetts, siblings Stacy (Alan) Southworth, Josh (Stacey) Tippetts, Trisha (Dave) Hayes, Autumn Davison, Sherrill (Jeremy) Scogin. He is also survived by his nieces and nephews, Miranda (Mark) Ferguson, Kaitlyn (Josh) Grusing, Rylee, Kyra, and Jaxon Hayes, Jasper and Stacia Tippetts, Hailey, Zoey, McKayla, and Ashlynn Davison, Maddie and Greyson Scogin. He is also survived by his great-nephews and niece, Ethan, Claire, and Samuel Ferguson.

John was preceded in death by his father, Daniel Tippetts, grandfathers John Hampton and Marion Tippetts and grandmothers Billie Whiting and Toynette Tippetts and his nephews, Hayden Scogin and Chase Davison, and brother-in-law, Josh Davison.

Services will be held on Saturday, November 29, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. at the Cowley LDS Church.