John C. Simons, 80, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, died April 17, 2019, at Banner Desert Hospital in Mesa, Arizona.

John was born September 24, 1938, in Burlington, Iowa, to Hubert N. and Viola M. (Beaman) Simons. He grew up in Oquawka, Illinois, and graduated from Gladstone/Oquawka High School in 1956. After graduation, he joined the U.S. Air Force and served six years at bases in South Dakota, Newfoundland, and Nebraska.

He and his former wife, the late Aileen K. Kotrous, adopted and raised two children, John William and Beth Anne.

John worked in finance and ended his working career at Concrete Materials in Sioux Falls where he became interested in quartzite, rocks, and other minerals.

He married Carol (Gulick) Miller in 1993. The couple spent the next 25-plus years together serving, traveling, and spending time with family.

A lifelong member of the United Methodist Church, John rarely missed Sunday morning worship, even if he was traveling. He was deeply influenced by the church’s outreach ministries. He and Carol volunteered with the NOMADS, which provided free labor for United Methodist organizations. Joining other volunteers, John and Carol helped construct, remodel and repair buildings at 26 camp sites, retreat centers and community projects.

There was never an adventure that John turned down. As soon as he retired, he and Carol hooked up a fifth-wheel camper to their pickup and traveled to 46 states, enjoying the people they met and the places they experienced. They spent their winters in Casa Grande, Arizona, where John played pool and explored his interests in genealogy, photography and lapidary.

In particular, John’s great-nephews and great-nieces were fascinated by the smooth, brilliant stones and semi-precious rocks that he polished into handheld pieces of art. Many of John’s friends and family received these small treasures as gifts, along with the story of the Ebenezer stone from 1 Samuel 7:12.

John was an avid fan of Nebraska Cornhusker football, cheering on his favorite team while wearing his signature red shirt. And certainly, John cherished time spent with his family. He happily cheered on his grandsons as they played football, basketball, and baseball.

John is survived by wife, Carol Simons of Sioux Falls; son, John W. of San Diego, California; daughter, Beth Andersen, and her husband, Jeffrey, and grandsons, James Calvin (Lexie) and John Christopher, all of Omaha, Nebraska; brother- and sisters-in-law, Martha G. Koosmann of Appleton, Minnesota; Kathryn and Murray Johnson of Chadron, Nebraska; and many nieces, nephews, cousins, and NOMAD friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his brothers O. Robert and Hubert; his sisters Viola Seitz and Vallene Smith; his brother-in-law Gerald Koosmann.

Services will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Friday May 10, 2019, at First United Methodist Church of Sioux Falls. Visitation will begin at 12:30 p.m. at the church. Inurnment with military honors will be at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 11, 2019, at Hillside Cemetery, Egan, South Dakota. www.heritagesfsd.com