Have a memory of John? Share it!
(It’s okay if it involves some debauchery, we all know that fun and adventure were part of who he was, but try to keep it PG if possible, lol.)
Don’t worry about being fancy with your words. Your memories of John will be a ray of sunshine for us during a difficult time, no matter how they’re written.
Click in the COMMENT box below to share.
Navegaba en internet y me encontré con su biografía, interesante por cierto. Pese a no conocerlo y luego de ver sus fotos en el álbum familiar solo resta decir que lamento su partida señor John. Ha tenido una brillante vida y familia. Luis desde Argentina.
I met John the fall we were both starting elementary school in West Grove. We both attended three years at the West Grove school, ( I know I’m dating myself, but we survive being with about 9 other classmates, in one room, one heating stove, and one instructor!!) One does not go three years, 180 days in the school year, in one room and not get to know your friends really well.
As we graduated from eighth grade, we were all forced to broaden our educational horizons and were bused to the Davis County High School, in Bloomfield. There we found new studies, new interests, and wonderful new friends. During our four years in high school, John and I rode different buses to and from school. But we would see each other in the halls while changing classes. He would always stop and we would exchange “hellos” as much as we could with three minutes to be in your seat before the last bell rang.
After graduation from Davis High, we lost touch, only to be reunited at several class reunions through the years. John shared with me about his family and how he was doing. I could not help but notice that no matter what I asked John about his life, and what was happening at the time, John would always circle back around to his girls, always. He had four girls and he would tell you everything about them. You could see he was so proud of all of them.
In 2018 John was sitting at our (West Grove) table. He was telling us all about his four girls and how they were the best in the world!! As the night was ending, we were leaving, I turned back to John and said, ” take care and be careful”. I will always remember the biggest smile, and he said to me “can’t do anything else, my girls always watch after me and keep me busy.”
The John I have known was gentle, polite, with a mischievous smile, and a twinkle in his eye!!! I know without a doubt, his four girls were the center of John’s universe, and that certainly was the way John wanted it.
A man carries his last name his entire life here on earth. It is very difficult to find that man, where his last name fits him to a T. What a Fine Man, and wonderful friend John was. God bless you, his girls!
Brenda, thank you so so much for sharing this with us. It’s fun to see a glimpse of Dad through others’ eyes, especially someone who knew him for so long! Thanks again for taking the time to share. == Lydia (daughter #3)
I met John when he was 17 & I was 13 , a friend introduced us. John drove a white convertible with a red interior. He loved to meet with friends, and we’d pile in the car, & drive all over the county. I believe gas was $.50 per gallon at that time. In Bloomfield everyone ” scooped the loop” on Friday & Saturday nights. That just meant we drove around the square a few hundred times a night. John never knew a stranger, he had the greatest sense of humor, and the biggest heart. John decided he should be the one to teach me to drive. So we started out just driving around the block near my house. He cringed anytime I hit the curb or didn’t quite get stopped behind the stop sign. I managed to keep from hitting any objects that would mar the fenders on his pride & joy (car). I also attended a few gatherings at the cabin. John knew how to have good, clean fun. Interestingly, when I married Bill, we lived in the neighborhood of John’s family farm. Our condolences to all of John’s family.
Hi Sherrie, apologies for my delay in responding to your note. Thank you so much for sharing these memories! I’m trying to picture Dad willingly teaching someone to drive with his treasured car!! He wasn’t the most fun to learn to drive from because he had pretty high standards! 🙂 I shared your note with my sisters when you posted it back in March, and we all enjoyed it so much. Thank you again. –Lydia (daughter #3)
John was like a brother to me. We grew up together from the time we were born. My parents introduced John’s parents to each other. Our mothers were best friends and discovered they were pregnant at the same time. We were born 16 days apart.
From the early days we had many adventures and escapades as children. Our parents’ farms provided playing opportunities in the barns and haylofts to corncribs. My dad did not appreciate our corn crib adventures. We also explored the pastures and woods. I acquired lots of cockleburs on many adventures. The Fine farm had land on the south and north side of Highway 2. To get from the house on the south side to the woods on the north side we avoided crossing Highway 2 by going “under” the highway through the culvert. I remember when Floyd and Shorty (Beth) built their new home. Floyd made sure there was a family room in the basement for a pool table. Many hours were spent at the pool table by anyone who visited with the Fines. John, Dale, my sister Deanna, and I spent hours listening to the music popular with teenagers. We also spent many adventures at the State Fair. Because the Fines lived west of West Grove and my family lived northeast of Bloomfield, we did not go to school together until high school.
When we were in high school, John was cleaning his grandfather Bollman’s gun and it exploded. A piece went into an eye, and he was hospitalized in Des Moines. My mom, a former schoolteacher, let me skip school to visit John in Des Moines. That was amazing because skipping school was a big no-no according to my mom! She and I were driving out of town that morning and met Christine Bailey the school secretary. I don’t know if Christine recognized me, but I never go in trouble.
John will be remembered as my brother.
Thank you so much for these memories, Donna Mae. We know how much Dad treasured your friendship.
Dear John & Family –
I meet you through friends of friends (if that makes since) we did a few whitewater rafting trips together (with other friends). The evenings around the campfires were the best. Remembering the talks John & I had together just the two of us, we never solved the world problems just a nice visit with a few toasts and many laughs.
I remember always hoping that John & Monica would be in the raft ahead of ours because when they put their life jackets on it was time for me to put mine on (or I call it “Life Jacket Up”). I also knew that they (John & Monica) would have a hand held out my way if the raft was to flip or if I needed help up the bank when we beached it, (or that meaning stopping for a cold one). So years go by and often I think about “Life Jacket Up” (a safety thing I do – not literally but I think you know what I mean) because friends often remember the memories and the life jacket is mine.
So Fine Family & Friends I will continue to “Life Jacket Up” and know John will watch over us all.
LeAnn Story
Thank you so much Leann. ❤️
One extremely cold but sunny morning in 1977, my semi jelled up just north of Centerville. As I was wondering what to do, John came by, turned his fuel truck around and pulled in front of me. He put some #1 fuel in the tanks, then took the fuel line loose and removed the jell. He was my savior from then on. I decided I didn’t need to be out that day, and turned around and went to the Saddle Rock for coffee and BS! RIP John!
Sounds like Dad, all the way!! Thank you for sharing this with us!! ❤️
One extremely cold but sunny morning in 1977, my semi jelled up just north of Centerville. As I was wondering what to do, John came by, turned his fuel truck around and pulled in front of me. He put some #1 fuel in the tanks, then took the fuel line loose and removed the jell. He was my savior from then on. I decided I didn’t need to be out that day, and turned around and went to the Saddle Rock for coffee and BS! RIP John!
When my wife first met John…
My wife and I were building a barn and had been working night and day, non stop for months. To say we were exhausted was an understatement. I saw John pull up to the barn just as I was walking around to where my wife was working. My wife was nailing boards on the barn and the first thing John said her was something to the effect of “it’s pretty obvious you don’t know what the hell your doing”…(not hi I am John Fine and this is my sense of humor). My wife’s answer to that was who the hell are you and once she stopped cussing and throwing things at him, I introduced her to the real John. The guy with the biggest heart that would do anything for you and help even when not asked to help… Which he did by working for the next couple weekends on his own free time to help us out.
The world would be a better place if everyone had the heart and compassion that John had for everyone (well almost everyone… 🙂
You were one of my best friends for 40 years, you are really missed….
Ha ha! Sounds about right!!! Thanks for sharing, BW. It was clear how much Dad respected you and liked your family so much…. And this is a great story.
In the spirit of grass never growing under John’s feet…
John drove a group of us to meet a client to attend an event. We pulled up in the hotel parking lot and immediately saw the client by their vehicle. The client jumped in our vehicle and John immediately took off and got on the interstate. Not that John cared, but the client was not ready to go as they had just pulled into the hotel parking lot, left their luggage sitting out in the parking lot, the vehicle doors open and the keys in the ignition (their vehicle may have even been still running). it took us 20 minutes to get John to turn our vehicle around to head back to the client’s hotel.
Punch line from John was: “if you aren’t ready to go don’t get in my vehicle.”
Ps. These last couple years when you would call Dad with questions about a site or tanks/piping, it used to make his day. Dad loved nothing as much as being useful and you let him be that even when he couldn’t count on his body to behave anymore. ❤️
I met John when I was a senior in HS. John was 2 yrs older. I was part of the crew that built the cabin on his dads farm. We drank copious amounts of beer during and after the cabin was built. It might still be standing. John and I and a few other friends used to do the ordinary entertainment in southern Iowa, drive around the town and countryside and drink beer. I worked for John a couple of times driving tractors in the summer of 70 or 71. I also went to Indian Hills and got a mechanics certificate. John and I considered becoming partners in a mechanic shop but never did. John drove a Nash Rambler when I knew him. I remember it having a 3 speed on the column with an overdrive. Overall we just had fun. In the summer of 72 or 73, 4 of us took a trip west in John’s pickup and camper. We did buy tequila in Mexico and overall it was a party trip.
If I remember right John liked ketchup and syrup on his cottage cheese. Bottoms up John!!
Hi David, this is so wonderful, thank you so much for sharing. I’ve forwarded this on to my three sisters!
The cabin isn’t there any longer, but it was still standing through the late 1990s! My sisters Jessica and Monica enjoyed some beer-drinking there in their teen years. 🙂
And you were right about the syrup on the cottage cheese, though I don’t think I ever saw him put ketchup on it… but if he did, I wouldn’t have been surprised. We joked that ketchup was a food group for Dad, and us girls all inherited the same ketchup habits.
Thank you again for taking the time to share these memories. It means the world to us. <3 -Lydia (daughter #3)
John and I and maybe a couple of others! Maybe they some eggs during Home Coming in our High School years! Lol Drank a lot of Beer together! He was a great friend!
Thank you for sharing, Dorothy!
I first met John through my father working on the stations in Centerville, IA, crossed paths several more times through the years until he was my Senior Inspector and Trainer, I remember when ever I may call him with a question the first thing he asked was “You lost again”. (You all should try chasing him from inspection to inspection on Missouri back roads, you’d get lost too). I’m damned proud to have known you and the influence you have had on my life and career. Thank you so very much. Rest well! You’ve earned it!
This is beautiful, Jim. Thank you so much.