John O. Holwager, III

John Oliver Holwager III was born in Beach Grove, Indiana on October 27, 1937. He left this life on October 16, 2019.  He was the son of John O. And Georgia B. Holwager. The family later moved to Southern Indiana where John attended both grade school and high school. He joined the Indiana National Guard during his Senior Year, and spent 8 years with the Guard.  He attended Purdue University where he received his Bachelor’s Degree in Forestry.  While attending the university, he met and married his wife, Sharon Amundson. They have 3 children —Lee Ann Underwood (Wesley), John Holwager IV (Mary), and Terri Welter (Loren). He has 2 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren. He has 1 brother, Joseph Holwager of Lancaster, PA.  He was preceded in death by his parents and his sister, Elizabeth Ross.

Following graduation, John went into the U.S. Forest Service where he worked for 30 years, starting as a forester and later as a land appraiser, retiring in 1992. During those years, the family moved to several areas — Tell City, Indiana,  Marietta , Ohio, Paintsville, Kentucky, Harrisburg, Illinois, and then finally to Cedar City, Utah where he finished out the final 17 years of his career. John and Sharon retired from their jobs on the same day, John loved  his retirement years. He loved the out of doors, and spent countless hours in his yard and garden, many wonderful RV travels, the most memorable of which were a 2-month trip through Alaska, and another through the Maritime provinces in Canada — New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, St. Edwards Island, Newfoundland, and even Labrador.  Their RV trips included all but 4 states in the U.S. He also loved being on the water and enjoyed frequent cruises, many with family members, seeing much of the Carribbean, Hawaii, Alaska, the Mediterranean, and the Baltic areas. He was an active square dancer, and he and Sharon enjoyed dancing for over 35 years. He was also an active member of Christ the King Catholic Church. John and Sharon moved to Colorado last year so that they could be closer to their children.

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