Obituary

John Thie Henderson, 67, of Goodyear, AZ died November 15, 2015.  John was born March 12, 1948 in Burlington, IA to John L. and Hulda Henderson. As an only child raised by a single mother John eagerly embraced the Boy Scouts, rising to the rank of Eagle Scout and Order of the Arrow. Upon graduation from Burlington High School in 1966, John along with seven of his friends enlisted into the United States Marine Corps.  He trained as an avionics electronics technician, in which he achieved rank of LCpl until his honorable discharge.

After returning home to Iowa, John took a chance on a blind date and met Mary Fuhrmeister. Their love blossomed and they were married on June 7, 1969. John was a dedicated employee to several companies in Eastern Iowa. In 1983, John and family moved to Goodyear, AZ where John worked a variety of jobs before becoming a civilian contractor for the US Air Force.  He was employed first at the Gila Bend Bombing Range and then at Luke Air Force Base as a taxi driver for the pilots.

John had a variety of interests in life. He loved music, and was a member of two bands in the Burlington Iowa area in the 1960’s; “The Dave Shane Combo” and “The Sidewinders”. He even showed Brittany Spaniels for five years at dog shows, in Iowa. In Arizona, John was a referee for soccer and he was a member of several bowling leagues at Avondale Lanes. After retirement, John delved into woodworking, in which he excelled in scroll work.

However, it was John’s activity in the community that brought him his greatest joy.  He was a member of Jaycees in Iowa and Arizona, holding a variety of local offices. The local Jaycees Haunted Houses was his favorite activity. His experience with scouting as a youth led him to become a Scoutmaster both in Iowa and in AZ with Troop 91 of the Grand Canyon Council.  His diligent work with the Scouts in Troop 91 resulted in six troop members achieving the rank of Eagle Scout. His love of scouting was passed to his son Matthew, with whom he is a fellow member of Marines, The Order of the Arrow and Eagle Scout, and to his grandsons who are also very active in scouting.

John is survived by his wife Mary, daughter Patricia (Jerry), son Matthew (Angela), and five grandchildren, Kelsey, Natalie, Declan, Maddox and Atticus.  A memorial service will be held 11:00 am on Friday, November 27, 2015 at Thompson Funeral Chapel, 926 S Litchfield Road, Goodyear, AZ  85338.  Interment will be at the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona.

In lieu of flowers the family would suggest a contribution to either Fort Jackson Troop 89, C/O: Matt Ewers Scout Master, 5810-A Burt Rd, Columbia, SC 29207 (Declan Cleveland); or Pack 543, Memorial Tribute, Orange County Council, BSA 1211 East Dyer Road Santa Ana, CA 92705 (Maddox Henderson).