John Burton Heartt III

KEWANEE – John Burton Heartt III, 69, of Kewanee, died at 17:57 p.m., Thursday, March 7, 2019 at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.

Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m., Saturday, March 16 at the First Congregational Church in Kewanee. Pastor Justin Rumley will officiate. Visitation will be held from 5:00-8:00 p.m., Friday, March 15 at the church. Burial will be in Pleasant View Cemetery where military rites will be accorded by the Kewanee Veterans Council. Memorials may be directed to the family for a memorial to be established. Rux Funeral Home in Kewanee is in charge of the arrangements.

He was born to Lanis Lee and Tommie Louise Joyce on July 29, 1949 in Princeton, KY with the given name of Robert Gordon Joyce. He would later be adopted by John Burton Heartt II and Alice Louise Heartt and his name would be changed. He married Delcine Daniels on August 1, 1970 in Kewanee. Survivors include his wife of Kewanee, three sons; Aaron (Jamie) Heartt of Aledo, Jared Heartt and his fiance, Pam Emmons of Bradford and Justin Heartt and his significant other, Pam Makela of Lexington, SC, his brother, Thomas (Beth) Lee of Vincennes, IN, a sister, Sarah Moles of McLeansboro, IL, five grandchildren; Jayden, Gabriel, Madeleine, Josiah and Arija and several nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews and great-great nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his natural and adopted parents and five sisters.

John attended schools in Downers Grove, IL and Dallas, TX and graduated from Kewanee High School and from Black Hawk East. He served his country in the U.S. Army National Guard during the post-Vietnam Era. He had been a recruiter, took part in Blazing trails in Honduras and was present in Germany when the Berlin Wall came down. He started out as a welder and later became maintenance supervisor for John Deere Harvester Works until his retirement. He was a member of the First Congregational Church where he was a Deacon and an usher. He was also a member of the American Legion and the Kewanee Veterans Council. He enjoyed antique cars, welding and sandblasting, golfing, traveling and family outings. He especially enjoyed being with his children and grandchildren and was a proud father of 3 Eagle Scouts.

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