John R. Hallenbeck

John Raymond Hallenbeck, age 68, passed away on Wednesday October 5, 2016 at Ascension All Saints Hospital. John was born in Lawrence KS on April 15, 1948, but lived in Linwood a small nearby town. He was the the eldest of five, one brother and three sisters: David, Julie, Marcia and Jennifer. They were proud and humble people as John was as an adult. All five children attended and graduated from college with no debt.

John was popular in high school and always had a job when he wasn’t in school. He attended Emporia State Teacher’s College where he received a degree in exceptional education. He came to Racine WI at the age of 21 and taught for thirty-four years. He received a master’s degree in computer science. While teaching, he found the curriculum lacking so he wrote two books entitled SCIENCE SHORTS, and incorporated the material into his classroom. Because of these books, John received the State of Wisconsin ARC award in recognition of his sharing their mission. These books were published and are still being sold today. John retired in 2001 and shortly thereafter was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.

John loved friends and having fun. He had a keen sense of humor and made family, friends, strangers, and students alike laugh. He was honest….but known to exaggerate for the sake of a laugh! He was always fair and didn’t have a vindictive bone in his body. He became an avid golfer and spent his teaching free summers on the surrounding golf courses. It was a sad day when he had to surrender his clubs.

Though having passed, John was particularly devoted to his father Earl. His mother was a victim of Alzheimer’s as well. He met Julie, who would become his wife, at Mitchell Junior High School. They were together forty years and married on July 30, 1982. Although they had no children, he is survived by his two wheaten terriers, MickeyD and Early.

At his request, John was cremated. There will be no services, but also at his request, there will be a hardy party at a later date.

The family wishes to thank the nurses and aides on floor 3B at All Saints. They were generous with their kindness, care and compassion to both John and Julie. Remembrances may be made to the Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60601.