Captain Howard R. VanWinkle, USMC, Ret. , 85, of Bettendorf, Iowa, passed away on Tuesday, January 8, 2019 at his residence surrounded by his loving family. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Monday at McGinnis-Chambers Funeral Home in Bettendorf.
Visitation will be held from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday afternoon at the funeral home. Burial will be at the Rock Island Arsenal National Cemetery. Memorials may be directed to the family to be distributed at a later time.
Howard was born on December 29, 1933 in Iowa City, Iowa, the son of Orville and Merle (McKenzie) VanWinkle. On April 12, 1956, he married Sandra L. Reichert in Muscatine, Iowa. Howard served in the United States Marine Corp for 22 years, retiring as Captain.
During his career, he was awarded numerous medals of service including: Bronze Star with Valor, Naval Commendation Medal with Valor, a Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal with 5 Stars, National Defense Service Medal with 1 Star, Korean Service Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with 1 Star, United Nations Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal with 60, Presidential Unit Citation, Certificate of Commendation, Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry with Palm and Gold Frame, Vietnamese Honor Medal, Ethnic Minorities Development Medal, Bronze Star with Oak Leaf, Vietnamese Service Medal with 7 Stars, and Combat Action Ribbon. He was a member of Weapons Company 3rd Battalion, Marines of Long Ago, and Marine Corp Mustang Association. He was also active in Toys for Tots for many years.
Howard enjoyed fishing and camping, and was a member of Pearl City Good Sam’s Camping Club. He was a member of Legacy Baptist Church, where he was always willing to lend a helping hand wherever it was needed. He served in many roles at the church, including being a Deacon, greeter, and member of the choir.
Through the church he helped to build churches and ministered to prisoners in Guam. He and his wife were both baptized in the ocean in Guam. He is survived by his wife, Sandra VanWinkle of Bettendorf; daughters, Cindy (Barry) Allison of Oskaloosa, Iowa, Pam (Kevin) Chambers-Galbavy of East Moline, Illinois, Teresa VanBesien-Achenbaugh of Pleasant Valley, Iowa; son, Howard “Bud” (Shay) VanWinkle II of Bettendorf; sister, Louise Salek of Muscatine, Iowa; brother, Duane (Nina) VanWinkle of Port Byron, Illinois; grandchildren, Mike Allison of Knoxville, Iowa, Jon (Rachael Kobliska) Allison of Ames, Iowa, Steve Allison of Seymour, Connecticut, Emin (Lauren) Nabiyev of Roseville, California, Jeremy Chambers of Eldridge, Iowa, Justin Chambers of Davenport, Iowa, Chris (Savannah) VanBesien of Austin, Texas, Nicole VanBesien of Bettendorf, Whitney Achenbaugh of Iowa City, Iowa, Breanna Achenbaugh of Pleasant Valley, Scott Achenbaugh of Pleasant Valley, Tonya (Murphy) Epton of Bettendorf, Sara Meneses of Silvis, Illinois, David Goellnitz of Springfield, Illinois, Daniel (Katie) Goellnitz of Silvis; and 36 great-grandchildren.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by a brother, Robert VanWinkle; and a grandson, Brian Achenbaugh.
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