John L. Campbell

CAMPBELL, WILLIAMS, BARNHOUSE, CHASE

Posted By: volunteer
Date: 4/4/2015 at 14:13:36

John L. Campbell, 77, of Oskaloosa, died Monday, Jan. 28 at Mahaska Hospital. A memorial service will be 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at St. James Episcopal Church in Oskaloosa, Vicar Margaret Butler officiating. The body has been cremated; a private family burial at Forest Cemetery will follow the memorial service.. The family will be at Garland-Van Arkel-Langkamp Funeral Chapel 5-6:30 p.m. today to greet visitors. Memorials: The John Campbell Memorial Tree Fund to plant trees at Harvest Point Golf Course.

John Campbell was born April 2, 1924 to Dr. Walter V. and Esther Williams Campbell in the hospital founded by his grandfather, Dr. B.G. Williams, in Oskaloosa. He attended Oskaloosa schools and was a 1942 graduate of The Webb High School in Bell Buckle, Tenn. He attended the University of Chicago before serving in the Merchant Marines during World War II. In 1948 he graduated from the University of Iowa, where he played on the varsity golf team. He married Dianne Barnhouse in 1951 and farmed for several years before owning and operating the Edwards & Campbell Construction Co. After serving in the federal government as a political appointee, he owned and operated several local convenience stores.

He served in the Iowa Senate, authored "The American Story" and taught at William Penn College. Through the years he served on the YMCA Board of Directors, St. James Episcopal Vestry, the Oskaloosa Community School Board and was a member of Do-Gooders International. His interests included astronomy, birding, photography, history, politics, natural history and especially golf. He won city championships seven times in six consecutive decades. He also won the Elmhurst Country Club Tournament 12 time. He was an Iowa State Senior Match-Play champion and a State Amateur runner-up. He qualified for six USGA Senior Amateur championships and was selected as Iowa Senior Player of the Year in 1989.

He is survived by his wife, Dianne of Oskaloosa; four children and spouses: B.G. and Sandra Campbell of Gulf Shores, Ala., Jamie and Eric Chase of Montclair, N.J. Charley and Sandra Campbell of Hollister, Calif. and Tom and Stephanie Campbell of Oskaloosa; 10 grandchildren; a brother and sister-in-law: Keith and Mary Fran Campbell of Oskaloosa; and a sister-in-law, Barbara Campbell of Oskaloosa.

He was preceded in death by his parents and a brother, Robert V. Campbell.

(Oskaloosa Herald, Tuesday, January 29, 2002, p. 5)