Obituary for John C. Van Houten

A memorial service for John C. Van Houten, 83, a Yerington resident, will be June 28, 2003, at the Van Houten family reunion in Weiser, Idaho.

Mr. Van Houten died Feb. 2, 2003, at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Reno. He was born March 17, 1919, in Taylor, Neb., to Harry C. and Faye Abbott Van Houten.

He graduated from Taylor High School in 1937.

Mr. Van Houten enlisted in the U.S. Army on June 15, 1942, and served in the 304th Infantry Regiment. He received the Purple Heart for being wounded in Germany on Feb. 25, 1945, and was discharged December 1945.

He attended the University of Nebraska and earned a bachelor's of science degree from the College of Agriculture in 1953. He received a master's degree in agronomy and botany in 1955.

Mr. Van Houten moved to Nevada in 1962, and began working for the Farm Home Administration. After a disabling automobile accident, he became an avid reader and history buff. He spent many hours tracing his family genealogy.

He was active in Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans and many patriotic and environmental causes.

Among his survivors are his sister, Irene Goos of Ava, Mo.; and seven nieces and nephews.

He will be buried with his parents in the Kent Cemetery near Burwell, Neb.