John Dennis Lawler
John Dennis Lawler
John Dennis Lawler, 87, of Kokomo, passed away peacefully Wednesday evening, January 14, 2026, at Community Howard Regional Health Hospital in Kokomo with his family by side. He was born on June 2, 1938, the son of John L. and Myrtle A. (Studer) Lawler. On September 21, 1968, he married Linda K. Fodness in Albert Lea, MN, and she survives.
John’s family called him Dennis, as to not confuse him with his father or grandfather. He and his mother lived with her parents in Albert Lea and in Minneapolis for his first seven years as the Army had his father stationed overseas. By the mid-’40s his dad had Army family housing, so John grew up in many places including living two years in Japan, along with Fort Knox in Kentucky and Fort Story in Virginia. Dennis got tired of moving around, so before his senior year, he moved back in with his Grandma Studer to finish high school in Albert Lea, graduating in 1956 with his cousin Penny.
After high school, John joined the Navy and was stationed on the famous Essex-class aircraft carrier the USS Intrepid, now a museum in NYC, with deployments to the Mediterranean Sea and Panama. Getting to service aircraft on the flight deck and fly out in the rear gun seat of cargo planes gave John a life-long love of flying. He logged over a million flight miles in his lifetime.
After the Navy, John returned to Albert Lea where he commuted to Austin Junior College, becoming friends with Darrel Slinde, Linda’s cousin who introduced them. John and Linda both went on to finish bachelor’s degrees at the University of Minnesota. John worked toward a Chemical Engineering degree for some time but also loved taking history classes. Money was tight, so Linda, who had graduated already, “made” John graduate with a degree in history.
While attending “the U” John worked as the supervisor in the basement lab of the Space Science Center, where he got to help fabricate a coin the university sent with NASA to the moon. There he also made life-long friends of Joe Jambor, Dave Zenk, and Sheldon Mains. John was a big fan of the Big Bang Theory TV show, feeling a kinship to his time at the U.
John worked as a printed circuit board draftsman during the ‘80s and ‘90s. Steady employment was difficult, but he found contract work in Kokomo at Delco in 1982 for a year. During this time his youngest, Megan, was born, arriving “home” to his Manor Motel room to find a Post-It note on the TV, reading simply “Call home. Baby born.” He also found work in Milwaukee where he got to spend time with his Petzke relatives. He ended up back at Delco/Delphi in 1987-88. Linda and he decided they’d had enough of him not being home. They decided to move their family to Kokomo in March 1989.
He loved to talk and to have conversations with family and friends, made even better if there was a cold Special Export beer or glass of red wine to be had with the conversations. His kids grew up convinced he was incapable of answering a simple yes or no question. So, it was seemingly fitting that he transitioned to being a Customer Service Engineer for the last 10+ years of his time at Delphi, of which he spent seven years flying to the Camaro/Firebird assembly plant in Quebec, Canada, on Mondays and then back home on Thursdays. He enjoyed the friendships he made with his CSE coworkers and loved the adventures they went on.
John enjoyed reading non-fiction history books about wars and the military and sci-fi/fantasy books, like Lord of the Rings. John was a huge fan of Star Trek and Dr. Who. He valued a big vocabulary and education. He was very proud of his children for all having college degrees.
He was a people person and a big kid. He loved Christmas. He enjoyed activities with his wife and kids and big holiday gatherings. He was a foodie who loved to cook and bake and watching PBS cooking shows, especially Julia Child and Jacques Pepin. He loved ribs, pulled pork, and coleslaw.
John enjoyed electronics, home stereo systems, and listening to classic rock and bluegrass. John loved tinkering and repairing things. He amused and annoyed his wife and kids with his frugalness, letting projects drag on for years because he wouldn’t buy all the required pieces at one time. He was a huge fan of sports cars, especially Jaguar E-types and Camaros.
John had his amateur radio license, was a member of the Kokomo HAM radio club, and enjoyed the storm chaser classes. Although he didn’t like to transmit, he loved listening to his friends on radio and was very grateful to the guys who strung up a new antenna in the backyard for him. John loved going to HAMfests, both to shop and just hang out with the guys.
He loved to travel, explore, and was a history buff who liked to visit and read about Civil War battlefields. He also enjoyed woodworking, boating, and canoes, building a cedar strip canoe with another of his U of M friends. John liked hiking, tent camping, collecting model trains, and had life-long love of photography. There was a darkroom at the U’s Space Science Center he used to develop and print black and white photos. He also took many pictures with his Nikon cameras on slide film and much enjoyed the family slide show nights where he got to discuss the family and places in the photos.
After retirement, John enjoyed trips to DC and Seattle to visit Sean and his family, and going out to breakfast with the HAM radio guys and tinkering in his radio room, along with hours of entertainment from watching YouTube videos on the big ore boats of Lake Superior, long haul truckers from his fond memories of driving for Wilson’s in Albert Lea, history, and woodworking. And he liked trying out new recipes.
His family is so grateful for the time they had with him and will dearly miss his jolly spirit.
Along with his wife Linda, John is survived by his children Erin (Robert) Plumb, Sean (Jacalyn Jenssen) Lawler, and Megan (Ken Cross) Lawler; grandchildren Fiona and Max Lawler; beloved cousins Irene Dassier and Mary Bye; sisters-in-law Vicki Petersen and Wendy Fodness; and nephew Renn Fodness.
He was preceded in death by his parents John and Myrtle Lawler; sister Mave Lawler; cousins Penny Lieb and William Studer; parents-in-law James and Priscilla Fodness; sister-in-law Shari Fodness; and brother-in-law Jim Petersen.
In keeping with John’s wishes, no public services will be held. He wishes to wait for his ashes to be scattered with his wife. Shirley & Stout Funeral Home & Crematory have been entrusted with arrangements.