JOHN PAUL LUKA

March 18, 1928 – April 27, 2010

John was a veteran of the U.S. Navy, who served aboard the USS Otis, USS LaSalle and USS Bairoko. He attended seven reunions of the USS Bairoko. He received a replica of the ship’s bell, which hangs in our dining area. The children love to ring the bell. He was very proud to have served his country.

He retired from City, Water, Light and Power, where he was an electrician for 50 years. He worked many power outages and emergency breakdowns for the power plant. The most outstanding was the 1978 Easter ice storm which called him away from his family for days. He helped his three sons build their homes. He could repair or fix whatever he was asked to do.

The thing that is missed about him is the big smile on his face.

He fought a long hard battle the last 10 years with heart surgery that destroyed his breast bone. His life ended with bladder cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. He fought long and hard to stay well. He died at the Illinois Veterans Home in Quincy.

He is missed by his children and grandchildren. He is especially missed by his wife of 60½ years. We all know he is happy spending his first Christmas in heaven.

—Maryanne Luka, his wife, Springfield