Obituaries: JOHN WILLIAM FEENEY July 17, 2008 02:36:02 PM ShareThis| Print Story | E-Mail Story John William Feeney, colonel, USAF retired, 85, died Monday, Oct. 2, 2006, in Walnut Creek, Calif., after an extended battle with cancer. He was born Nov. 9, 1920, at his father's ranch near Robb's Flat, S.D., the fifth of eight boys. He worked the ranch until he entered the Army Air Corps to pursue a lengthy career in the U.S. military. John's military career was remarkable for his service in three wars. In 1943, he joined the Army Air Corps and was sent to the European front. His fighter group, the 366th, flew P-47s. On Jan. 24, 1945, his plane was shot down by enemy fire. John was captured and held as a prisoner of war until May 1945. John flew combat missions in F-84s in the Korean War, and in 1964, he was called to Vietnam and served as a senior Air Force officer with the 4th Corps in the Mekong Delta region. John also served in peacetime, his favorite time, throughout the country and the world, finally retiring in Panama City, Fla., after 30 years of service. John is survived by his wife of 17 years, Maria Joosen Kozak-Feeney; his daughter, Terri Grammas and husband, Nick Grammas, and their family; son, Timothy Feeney and wife, Gloria Feeney, and their family; and daughter-in-law, True Rowan and husband, Ford Rowan, and their family. John was preceded in death by his oldest son, Lt. James Leo Feeney, a Navy pilot who died in the line of duty; and his wife of 40 years, Patricia Kelley Gallagher Feeney. John, a longtime resident of Panama City, spent the last 17 years in California with his wife, Maria, where both enjoyed lawn bowling and traveling together. Memorial services will be held at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Walnut Creek, Calif. Interment will follow at Black Hills National Cemetery in Sturgis, S.D.
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