John George Tripp

Service for John George Tripp will be 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, December 5, 2017 at St. Cecilia Catholic Church; burial will follow at Woodlawn Cemetery. Friends may visit at the funeral home on Monday, December 4, from 3-8 pm, with family receiving visitors from 5-8 pm. John passed away on Thursday, November 30, 2017 at his home with family by his side. He was 72.
Born June 2, 1945 in Kansas City to Charles Vincent and Josephine Lucido (Scimeca) Tripp, John was Baptized in the Catholic Church and attended St. Pius X Catholic High School, graduating with the class of 1963. He continued his education at Pittsburg State University, receiving a Bachelor’s Degree. While at Pittsburg State, John was a four year letterman in Football under head coach Carney Smith. In 1968 he was commissioned 2nd Lt in the US Army through the ROTC program. One might think John was quite busy with his studies, football and ROTC, during college, but there he met the lady he would spend the next 48 years of his life with, and before his deployment to Vietnam, John married Karen Kay Jones.
John was trained at Ft. Benning, Georgia, graduating from both Airborne and Ranger Schools, and went on to serve with the 23rd Infantry Division during Vietnam. He returned to Ft. Benning as an instructor at the United States Army Infantry School, teaching company level tactics to new officers. John attended graduate school and received a Masters of Educational Administration in 1974 from Georgia State University while at Ft. Benning.
John moved his family to Claremore, Oklahoma in 1975. He began working at Burgess-Norton, even before they had a building. He held numerous positions during his 30 years there, retiring as Manufacturing Manager in 2006. After moving to Oklahoma, John joined the US Army Reserve and trained at the 4156th US Army Reserve School in Broken Arrow, OK until his retirement in 1991 as a Lieutenant Colonel.
As a resident of Claremore, John was an early member of the Optimist Club. He was also very active in the Meals on Wheels program and was their treasurer for 8 years. He enjoyed fishing and boating with his family, and he also collected military memorabilia. John had a big heart, not only for his family, even strangers were recipients of his generosity. A planner and organizer, John would make a list for things that needed to be accomplished, he would even make a list for you to help insure that you were organized as well. He was always looking to be of help in any way he could.
John was preceded in death by his parents and one nephew Jon Kevin Jones.
Those family members that survive include his wife of 48 years, Karen of their home; his daughter Sarah Nail and her husband Chad of Claremore; his son Andy Tripp and wife Jenny of Tulsa; his grandchildren Connor Nail, Creed Nail, Anna Tripp and Madeline Tripp; sister Angela Tripp of Savannah, Georgia and brother-in-law Francis Jones of Claremore; nieces and nephews Kathy Lofts and family of San Diego, California, Capt. Charlie Deem and family of Ft. Campbell, Tennessee, and Jerry Deem of Tulsa.
In lieu of flowers please make a donation to Claremore Meals on Wheels, 715 McClellan, Claremore, OK, 74017, or St. Cecilia Catholic Church, 1304 N. Dorothy Ave., Claremore, OK, 74017.