John’s Obituary John Franklin Young, Jr., 84 of Cedar Rapids, died February 3, 2019 at West Ridge Care Center, Cedar Rapids. A Funeral Mass will be held 10:30 a.m., Friday, St. Jude Catholic Church, by Rev. Mark Murphy.
Friends may visit with the family from 4 to 7 p.m. on Thursday at Teahen Funeral Home. Private family inurnment will be at Mount Calvary Cemetery at a later date. John was born on November 20, 1934 in Cedar Rapids (he said to be near his mother) to John Franklin Young, Sr. and Marguerite (Klinefelter) Young, of Mount Vernon.
He was raised in Mount Vernon, was a special delivery and Gazette delivery boy, and a Hawkeye Boys’ State Representative in June of 1951. He graduated from Mount Vernon High School in 1952, lettering in football — just barely. He was also on the track team, saying somebody had to come in last.
After graduating high school, John attended Coe College and the University of Iowa. He then joined the Army in 1955 to see the world. Much to his dismay he never left the central time zone, serving in Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana, but qualified as a Korean War veteran, being honorably discharged in 1957.
John began working at Collins Radio, (now Collins Aerospace) but quit to attend the Rose Bowl in 1959 when the University of Iowa played there, because Collins would only give him three days off to attend the game. He subsequently attended seven more bowl games and had season tickets for over 17 years. He was a true Hawkeye fan.
John attended Central Technical Institute in Kansas City, MO, graduating in 1960 with an Associate in Science degree. While in school he met Sandra Holycross on a blind date and they later married in Kansas City in 1961. They moved to Cedar Rapids when John was rehired at Collins Radio.
Collins knew a good thing when they saw it. John worked at Rockwell Collins for 32 1/2 years, retiring as an Engineering Technician in 1992. He was a member of St. Jude Catholic Church, the Isle of Iowa Parrot Head Club, (Jimmy Buffett Fan Club) and a former member of American Legion PEKOMY Post 572.
He had a unique sense of humor who could make a joke out of just about anything. While a Parrot Head his nickname became “Forever”, as in “Forever” Young, and he lived up to that name, enjoying life to the fullest until Parkinson’s disease took over. He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Sandy; son John Franklin Young III and granddaughter Madison of Cedar Rapids; grandson Clayton (Scott’s son) of the Philippines; ex-daughter-in-law Masae Yonamine (Clayton’s mother) of Okinawa, Japan; daughter-in-law Martha Young of Dallas, TX (Clayton’s step-mother); and a niece and four nephews.
John was preceded in death by his parents; his sisters Pat Schloss and Ann Hale; an infant daughter Elizabeth (at 21 months) in 1968; and a son Scott (at 48) in 2011. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Iowa Chapter of the American Parkinson’s Disease Association, 1200 Pleasant St., Des Moines, IA 50309. In death a good and righteous man is gone.
Love you forever, “Forever”.
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