Snow and Fog, 34° F
(March 8, 1929 - Jan. 15, 2012)
John “Jack” H. Lawson, age 82, died peacefully on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2012 from natural causes.
He was born March 8, 1929 in Walhalla, N.D., the third child to William Harrison Lawson and Alice Bernice Ringland-Lawson. He grew up in North Dakota and began operating heavy equipment at the age of 16.
In March 1951 he joined the Army as a Combat Engineer where he served until September 1953. During his service in the Korean War, he earned the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the Army Occupation Medal (Japan) and three Bronze Service Stars.
Upon his discharge from the Army, he relocated to Wyoming where he met and married Edith A. Watts on Dec. 2, 1954, and they had three children. During his lifetime, he began selling insurance for Lafayette Life Insurance Company and was voted rookie of the year. He continued to sell insurance for a few years before returning to the construction industry as a heavy equipment operator.
He worked for various companies in several locations until his retirement at the age of 80, but the people he loved working with the most were the ones at Weeden Construction in Lewistown, Mont.
On Sept. 18, 1980 he married Shirley Welsh-Sorenson, eventually settling in Laurel, Mont.
Jack was a loving husband, father, and grandfather who enjoyed taking road trips, playing pinochle and spending time with friends and family. He will be deeply missed by all.
He was preceded in death by his parents, son Wyatt Lawson, grandson Reece Cape, brother Grant Lawson, and two sisters, Frances Watts and Mereda Roder.
He is survived by his wife Shirley A. Lawson of Laurel; daughter Julia (Ace) O’Neal of Helena, Mont.; son JC Lawson of Cody; stepdaughters Tina (Steve) Muller and Colleen (Robert) Lockrem of Billings, Chris Chezum of Columbus, Neb.; sisters Joyce Strand of Moorhead, Minn., Ida Glassier of Camarillo, Calif., Greta (Bruce) Buller of Rochester, Minn., and Muriel Harris of Powell; 13 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and several cousins, nieces and nephews.
A funeral service will be held at Smith’s Funeral Chapel at 315 East 3rd Street in Laurel on Friday, Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. A reception will follow at St. Anthony’s Parish Hall at 317 West 7th Street in Laurel.
Burial with complete military honors will be Saturday, Jan. 21 at the Crown Hill Cemetery in Powell at 12:30 p.m.
