John Stannard Obituary (1947

John C. Stannard was a stockman, a soldier, a family man, a mentor and an educator. He had a smile on his face, a song in his heart and a maybe even a joke to share. John was born February 18, 1947, in Scottsbluff, Nebraska to Donald and Louise Stannard. He had an older sister, Barbara Ann, and spent many of his growing up years on his grandparents' farm in Mitchell Valley. John is a 1965 graduate of Scottsbluff High School. He served his country in the Army National Guard, attending Officer Candidate School in Ashland, Nebraska. He was discharged as a First Lieutenant. He attended the Herdsman's Institute in Kansas City, Mo., and followed his dreams of working on registered cattle ranches from Nebraska to New York. In 1968, he married Connie (Raymer) and they built their lives on several ranches, spending multiple years at Cox Herefords in Mullen, Nebraska, and Iodence Hereford Ranch, Hemingford, Nebraska, until the cattle cycle dipped in the mid-1980s, and John decided to continue his education at Chadron State College. He studied agricultural business, and shortly after graduation, moved his family to Saint Francis, Kansas, where he started his career at Kansas State University as a county extension agent for agriculture and 4-H from 1989 until 1996, when he transferred to Russell County, Kansas. He retired from a 24-year career in extension in 2013. Moving to Russell County not only allowed John to work with some great cow-calf producers, but it also offered access to some great fishing in central Kansas, and he and Connie took up fishing. He enjoyed the sport, the peacefulness of it, and he especially liked encouraging others to fish. He became a leader and promoter of the 4-H Sportfishing Program in Kansas. Besides mentoring young 4-H members with various livestock projects, his greatest protege was his daughter Shelia Ann. John, Connie and Shelia built a flock of registered Hampshire and Dorset ewes. Attending sheep sales and shows become a family vacation each year and allowed John to grow his circle of friends. John and Connie moved to Mount Pulaski, Illinois, in 2014, to be closer to family. In 2015, they welcomed granddaughter Lily Kay into their lives. After many health challenges, John entered into his Heavenly home on July 28, 2021. He is survived by wife Connie, of the home; daughter and son-in-law Shelia and StanLee Grobosky of Alexis, Illinois, granddaughter Lily of Alexis, Illinois, sister Barb Robek, Anchorage, Alaska, and a host of friends. Memorial contributions can be made in John's honor to the Russell County 4-H Development Fund or the Nebraska Children's Home. Cremation rites are entrusted to Fricke-Calvert-Schrader Funeral Home in Mount