John Henry Duffin

Obituary John Henry Duffin 1929 - 2012 John Henry Duffin, of Ottawa, passed away on Dec. 7, 2012, after a long illness. He was born on June 11, 1929, in Oshkosh, NE, to the late John H. and Mary Elizabeth Duffin (nee Byrnes). His father was killed in a farming accident when John was two years old. His mother married Thomas Roudebush three years later, and the family soon moved west to seek a better future. They eventually settled in La Grande, OR, where John then completed high school. His younger sister Elizabeth (Betty) and younger step-brother Harold and step-sister Carol were raised along with John in La Grande. He began attending college at Eastern Oregon University, but he set his sights on an acting career and left Oregon for the University of Iowa school of drama. It was in Iowa City that he met and fell in love with Beverly Barger who he married 12-31-49. They moved to Des Moines, IA, to be closer to her family. John worked a series of jobs, finally working third shift at an aircraft factory while he completed his Bachelor's degree at Drake University in Des Moines. Rather than pursuing acting, he began a lifelong career in education. He later earned a Master's degree in Fine Arts at the University of Iowa. John accepted a position teaching high school Speech and English, and he taught for seven years in Iowa. In 1963, he took a job at Ottawa High School and stayed there for 26 years teaching Speech and English. Along the way, he won a Master Teacher Award for the State of Illinois. He served as Chair of the English Dept. at OHS for 20 years. His real passion was coaching competitive speech and directing high school plays. With the help of talented colleagues and dedicated students, he built highly successful speech teams and enjoyed many successes over the years. OHS speech teams won innumerable speech contests, conference titles, and regional championships. Many students went on to statewide competition and a talented few won their events at state. John's reputation among his peers was excellent, and he was honored by being elected President of the Illinois Speech and Theater Association for one year. He was also proud that each of his children participated, in turn, in his reader's theater group "Voices" which performed at various local venues. John retired from OHS in 1989. He secured a position teaching Speech and English at Patch High School at a US military base in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1989. He and Beverly enjoyed six wonderful years living in Stuttgart, making new friends, and doing all the traveling they could. They were generous hosts to visiting family and friends. Once John and Beverly returned from Germany, they continued traveling here in the United States whenever they could. John also plunged into an ambitious project to write and produce a series of 12 dramatic skits about the history of Ottawa. He worked with many others to stage the skits and musical accompaniment at an Ottawa Riverfest summer celebration outdoors. On 12-31-99, John and Beverly celebrated their golden anniversary with their large family. In recent years, as long as their health permitted, they wintered in Tempe, AZ. John was preceded in death by his dear wife Beverly who died on March 19, 2012. He is survived by six children and their families: John T. Duffin, Menasha, WI, and his son Conor (Danielle) and his daughter Kirstin; Sally (David) Hass, Leawood, KS, and their son Stephen and daughter Deborah; Julie (Jim) Wajrowski, La Salle, IL, and her son Brandon Duffin (Karisa); William (Cindy) Duffin, New Berlin, WI, and their daughter Anna and sons Blake and Luke; James (Gloria) Duffin, Princeton, IL, and their sons Garrett and Liam and their daughter Meghan; Susan (Rich) Navratil, Circle Pines, MN, and their daughter Caitlin and son Nathan. John is also survived by his sister Betty (Ray) Hyde, La Grande, OR, and their sons Gene (Lynn) Hyde, Bend, OR, and their daughters Emily and Stella and Tom Hyde, Portland, OR, and his son Austin and daughter McKenna; and by Beverly's nephew Garry (Nancie) Gloshen, Clive, IA, and their daughters Braedi Gloshen and Kindra (Tony) Kapsch and their daughter Anslee and son Caden. Services will be held on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2012, at Ottawa Funeral Home. Visitation will be at 10 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and a memorial service will be held at 1:00 p.m. with the Rev. Peter Ward officiating. Interment will be immediately following the service at Summitview Cemetery in Ottawa. Pallbearers will be John T. Duffin, William Duffin, James Duffin, David Hass, James Wajrowski, and Rich Navratil. Memorials may be sent to the O.T.H.S. Foundation.