John R Conner

October 5, 1924 - August 27, 2021

John R. Conner, 96, of South Bend and formerly of St. Joseph died Friday, August 27, 2021 at the Sanctuary of St. Paul’s Assisted Living Community in South Bend. Private services celebrating his life will be held at Noon on Saturday, Sept 11, at Riverview Cemetery in St. Joseph with Rev. Jeffrey Hubers officiating. The arrangements are by the Florin Funeral Service. Please share messages or memories at www.florin.net. John was born on Oct 5, 1924 in Evansville, IN to George and Luella Conner. He graduated from the Univ. of Cincinnati with a Masters of Engineering in 1948. John married his wife, Bettye, in 1949 and she preceded him in death in 2015. Together they celebrated 66 years of marriage. John was an active individual for most of his life. He was employed in many executive positions over his life span including Division Manager at Richmond Plastics, Purchasing Manager at R. R. Donnelley, Executive VP and General Manager at McCormick-Armstrong and Executive VP at Alden Press. In 1968 John and his wife, Bettye, purchased Modern Light Metals in Coloma which they operated for 18 years until their children took over. John and his wife, Bettye, were long time members of the St. Joseph First Congregational Church. He served as Chairman of many different boards including Board of Missions, Stewardship, Board of Trustees and the Search Committee. John was also active in the design, repair and maintenance of the Church including new roofing, new tower windows, access to the roof over the classrooms, and the metal handicap ramp. He also loved sports. While at the University he was a member of the Track Team where he earned 2 sweaters. John and his wife attended 5 summer Olympic Games at Mexico, Munich, Montreal, Los Angeles, and South Korea. He was a world traveler visiting 19 countries including China, Russia, Thailand, Australia and New Zeeland. John also played lots of golf in his retirement years. His family includes his children, Linda Conner of St. Joseph, Robert (Stefani) Conner of Fresno, CA and Kevin (Alisa Haas) Conner of Benton Harbor; his 4 grandchildren, Zachary Benkowski, Joanna Santiago, Alissa Malakan, and Jennifer Nandaniya and his 5 great grandchildren. ry in St. Joseph with Rev. Jeffrey Hubers officiating. The arrangements are by the Florin Funeral Service. Please share messages or memories at www.florin.net. John was born on Oct 5, 1924 in Evansville, IN to George and Luella Connor. He graduated from the Univ. of Cincinnati with a Masters of Engineering in 1948. John married his wife, Bettye, in 1949 and she preceded him in death in 2015. Together they celebrated 66 years of marriage. John was an active individual for most of his life. He was employed in many executive positions over his life span including Division Manager at Richmond Plastics, Purchasing Manager at R. R. Donnelley, Executive VP and General Manager at McCormick-Armstrong and Executive VP at Alden Press. In 1968 John and his wife, Bettye, purchased Modern Light Metals in Coloma which they operated for 18 years until their children took over. John and his wife, Bettye, were long time members of the St. Joseph First Congregational Church. He served as Chairman of many different boards including Board of Missions, Stewardship, Board of Trustees and the Search Committee. John was also active in the design, repair and maintenance of the Church including new roofing, new tower windows, access to the roof over the classrooms, and the metal handicap ramp. He also loved sports. While at the University he was a member of the Track Team where he earned 2 sweaters. John and his wife attended 5 summer Olympic Games at Mexico, Munich, Montreal, Los Angeles, and South Korea. He was a world traveler visiting 19 countries including China, Russia, Thailand, Australia and New Zeeland. John also played lots of golf in his retirement years. His family includes his children, Linda Conner of St. Joseph, Robert (Stefani) Conner of Fresno, CA and Kevin (Alisa Haas) Conner of Benton Harbor; his 4 grandchildren, Zachary Benkowski, Joanna Santiago, Alissa Malakan, and Jennifer Nandaniya and his 5 great grandchildren.