1947
John
2018
John R. Laidlaw
July 12, 1947 — March 11, 2018
John Robert Laidlaw, 70, went home to the Lord peacefully on March 11, 2018. He was born July 12, 1947, in Elkhart, IN to Frank and Dorothy (Harville) Laidlaw.
John graduated from Elkhart High School June 3, 1965. On October 11, 1966, John was drafted into the U.S. Army. He served with the 36th Signal Battalion on Fort Huachuca, Arizona. John was deployed to Vietnam in 1967 and was promoted to the rank of Specialist, E-4. He was Honorably Discharged on September 15, 1968.
On June 14, 1969, John married the love of his life, Colleen Gilliam. She preceded him in death December 30, 2016.
To their union, they were blessed with three children: Karen (Matthew) Titus of Elkhart, Bryan (Carmen) Laidlaw of Hereford, Arizona, and Kris (Mike) Losch of Elkhart. Also left to cherish his memory are, seven grandchildren: Brandon and Austin Titus, and Tyler, Sophia, Aaron, Sarah, and Daniel Laidlaw; one great-granddaughter, Lucia Laidlaw; mother-in-law, June Berkshire of Elkhart; three sisters-in-law: Deb (Denny) Murphy of Tavares, Florida, Judy Berkshire of Niles, Michigan and Joanne (Greg) O'Malia of Fort Collins, Colorado; two brothers-in-law, Ted (Mary) Berkshire of Elkhart, John (Glenda) Gilliam of Guam; and many nieces and nephews.
John was preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Dorothy Laidlaw, his brother, Lee Laidlaw, his father-in-law, Robert Berkshire, sister-in-law, Patricia (Berkshire) Harris and son-in-law, Matthew Titus.
John loved family time, fishing and cutting firewood. He was a little league coach, played fast pitch softball and won multiple Indiana State Championships. John was a wonderful and devoted husband and father. He was a member of St. Pius X Catholic Church, where he served as a eucharistic minister. No matter how much he accomplished in life, he never failed to put his family first. His smile was infectious, was dearly loved and will be dearly missed.
A visitation will be held on Thursday, March 22nd from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at McGann Hay Funerals / Cremations / Gatherings; 13260 SR 23, (enter off Cherry Rd), Granger, IN. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, March 23 at 11:30 a.m. at St. Pius X Catholic Church 52553 Fir Road, Granger, IN, Msgr. William Schooler, Pastor, officiating, with a visitation one hour prior to the mass from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Full Military Honors will follow the mass. A luncheon will follow the Military Honors at St. Pius X. He will be laid to rest, along with his wife, in Marion National Cemetery at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Alzheimer's and Dementia Services, 922 E. Colfax Ave. South Bend, IN 46617, or to the Center for Hospice Care, 501 Comfort Place, Mishawaka, IN 46545 or to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, 1235 South Clark Street, Suite 910, Arlington, VA 22202.
John graduated from Elkhart High School June 3, 1965. On October 11, 1966, John was drafted into the U.S. Army. He served with the 36th Signal Battalion on Fort Huachuca, Arizona. John was deployed to Vietnam in 1967 and was promoted to the rank of Specialist, E-4. He was Honorably Discharged on September 15, 1968.
On June 14, 1969, John married the love of his life, Colleen Gilliam. She preceded him in death December 30, 2016.
To their union, they were blessed with three children: Karen (Matthew) Titus of Elkhart, Bryan (Carmen) Laidlaw of Hereford, Arizona, and Kris (Mike) Losch of Elkhart. Also left to cherish his memory are, seven grandchildren: Brandon and Austin Titus, and Tyler, Sophia, Aaron, Sarah, and Daniel Laidlaw; one great-granddaughter, Lucia Laidlaw; mother-in-law, June Berkshire of Elkhart; three sisters-in-law: Deb (Denny) Murphy of Tavares, Florida, Judy Berkshire of Niles, Michigan and Joanne (Greg) O'Malia of Fort Collins, Colorado; two brothers-in-law, Ted (Mary) Berkshire of Elkhart, John (Glenda) Gilliam of Guam; and many nieces and nephews.
John was preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Dorothy Laidlaw, his brother, Lee Laidlaw, his father-in-law, Robert Berkshire, sister-in-law, Patricia (Berkshire) Harris and son-in-law, Matthew Titus.
John loved family time, fishing and cutting firewood. He was a little league coach, played fast pitch softball and won multiple Indiana State Championships. John was a wonderful and devoted husband and father. He was a member of St. Pius X Catholic Church, where he served as a eucharistic minister. No matter how much he accomplished in life, he never failed to put his family first. His smile was infectious, was dearly loved and will be dearly missed.
A visitation will be held on Thursday, March 22nd from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at McGann Hay Funerals / Cremations / Gatherings; 13260 SR 23, (enter off Cherry Rd), Granger, IN. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, March 23 at 11:30 a.m. at St. Pius X Catholic Church 52553 Fir Road, Granger, IN, Msgr. William Schooler, Pastor, officiating, with a visitation one hour prior to the mass from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Full Military Honors will follow the mass. A luncheon will follow the Military Honors at St. Pius X. He will be laid to rest, along with his wife, in Marion National Cemetery at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Alzheimer's and Dementia Services, 922 E. Colfax Ave. South Bend, IN 46617, or to the Center for Hospice Care, 501 Comfort Place, Mishawaka, IN 46545 or to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, 1235 South Clark Street, Suite 910, Arlington, VA 22202.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of John R. Laidlaw, please visit our flower store.
Guestbook
Visits: 0
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the
Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors