John Earl Fletcher

John Earl (Jack) Fletcher passed away on October 27th with family at his side. Funeral services will be 1:00 PM, Saturday November 5th, at St. Paul Lutheran Church with Rev. Kendall Meyer officiating. Burial will follow at North Lawn Cemetery with Military Rites Conducted by the V.F.W. Post 1856 and the U.S. Navy Honor Squad.. A visitation will be from 11:00 to 1:00 p.m. at the church with refreshments being served at the church. Our father was born on April 12th, 1923 to Mabel (Anderson) Fletcher and Earl Gill Fletcher in Webster City, Iowa. At the age of two, the family moved to Fort Dodge where Jack would spend the majority of his life. Raised during the depression, Jack participated in Hawkeye Boys State, and lettered in track in High School. Jack managed Fletcher DX Service while attending Fort Dodge Junior College where he played baseball and was a halfback on the Panthers championship football team. In the fall of 1942, Jack continued his education at Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa majoring in engineering. In the spring of 1944 he was called to service with the U.S. Navy. Our father proudly served as a petty officer (ETM3) with the Seabees and was deployed in the Philippines at Subic Bay. Jack mustered out June of 1946 and continued his studies at Iowa State College, where he received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering in 1947. While in college, Jack was a member of Pi Kappa Phi fraternity and Pi Tau Sigma engineering honorary. After college he took a position with Cedar Rapids Engineering but soon joined his father and brother Gill at Fort Dodge Machine and Supply Company. The brothers eventually bought the company and Jack served as its president, overseeing the company's growth with the addition of stores in Emmetsburg and Spencer and remained at the shop until his retirement in 1990. On September 3rd, 1955, Jack was united in marriage to Dona Mae Hinsch, his beauty queen and dance partner. They built a house together just north of Fort Dodge where they raised their four children. They subsequently bought, built and/or renovated 6 more properties (not counting rentals)... for no other reason than to have something to do! Jack was dedicated to his family, business, church and community, and gave selflessly to all. He was a loyal member of St. Paul Lutheran Church, American Legion, Toastmasters and Fort Dodge Amateur Investors. He also served on numerous boards, most notably, Fort Dodge YMCA and IAWA (Iowa Automotive Wholesalers Association). We will deeply miss this proud man of few words, constant motion and unconditional love. His "can do" spirit and incessant whistling won't soon be forgotten. Our father seldom raised his voice in anger, never got excited and always had a task and a plan. "Keep a level head" he would say, step back, stay calm, don't be reactionary... now analyze and solve the problem. He was full of life lessons and tidbits of wisdom that great fathers sprinkle about like fairy dust. We still stand in wonder and amazement of the powerful magic this man possessed. The Rube Goldberg contraptions and tinkerings at the shop and at his home were legendary... ancient machine tools never died, they went to the shop and were re-engineered and re-combobulated into horrendous, yet magnificent, chunks of art that would perform specific functions. Jack is survived by his daughters Bobbie Clark of Council Bluffs, Kathy Peterson of Fort Dodge, Jody (Jim) Mansueto of Pella, son David (Linda) of Guilderland New York, eight grandchildren, nine great-grand children, one great-great grandchild, and three sisters, Donna Petersen, Barbara Newsum and Ruth Fletcher. He was preceded in death by his wife Dona in 2019, his parents, brothers Gill and William and a sister Lois. He had a great wife and he had a great life! Rest in Peace our loving father. Laufersweiler Funeral Home is serving the family. Visitation Sat, Nov 5, 2022 at 11:00 am - 1:00 pm St. Paul Lutheran Church 400 S 13th St Fort Dodge, Iowa 50501 Funeral Sat, Nov 5, 2022 at 1:00 pm St. Paul Lutheran Church 400 S 13th St Fort Dodge, Iowa 50501