JOHN P. LASKA

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John P. Laska, 89, went to be with his Lord on Saturday, June 27, 2009, at the Paula J. Baber Hospice Home in Fort Dodge. Funeral services will be on Tuesday, July 7 at 10 a.m. at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Fort Dodge with Pastor Allan Henderson officiating. Burial will be at North Lawn Cemetery. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday at Gunderson Funeral Home and Cremation Services.

John Paul Laska, son of John and Mary Laska, was born on February 13, 1920, in Clark County, Wisconsin. He moved with his family to Fort Dodge in 1924. As a child, he attended St. Paul grade school and graduated from Fort Dodge Senior High in 1938. He spent two years with the Civilian Conservation Corps and entered the US Army on January 3, 1942. He was with the 32nd Infantry Division in the Pacific from April 1942 until September 1945. He was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received on March 15, 1943, along the Villa Verde Trail in north central Luzon in the Philippines. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious achievement in ground combat against the armed enemy during World War II in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operations.

After his honorable discharge from the Army, John was employed at US Gypsum in Fort Dodge. He later moved to San Diego and was employed by General Dynamics. After moving back to Iowa, he was employed by J.I. Case in Bettendorf. He lived in Badger, Iowa a short time before moving back to Fort Dodge in 2008.

John is survived by a sister, Judy Markey of Fort Dodge, a brother, Robert Laska of Chula Vista California and several nieces and nephews including Alan Markey of Fort Dodge, Marsha Dufon, Tom Lawton, Steve Lawton, Robert John Laska and Ann Margaret Laska. He was preceded in death by his parents, brother Ivan Laska of Fort Dodge and sister Alice (Pat) Lawton of San Diego California.

John was a member of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. He enjoyed playing golf with his buddies and attending his yearly Army reunions. Memorials may be left to the discretion of the family.