Submitted by John’s parents and family.

John Garman was born January 6‚ 1961. He died in a silo explosion on October 1‚ 2003‚ while on duty with the fire department.

John was a great guy. A friend to all he met; loved greatly by all his family‚ nieces and nephews‚ and is greatly missed.

He served 10 _ years on the New Bremen Fire Department following in the footsteps of a brother still on the department and a father who served 25 years. He was a dedicated member of the department‚ giving many hours of his personal time to cleaning‚ doing odd jobs at the station or whatever was asked. John loved the comradery with his fellow firefighters. He was the coordinator for the fire prevention programs and spent many hours organizing the fire safety programs for the elementary students along with poster contests‚ coloring books‚ etc. He felt one of the most important things was good fire safety for the kids because as he often said‚ ‘They are our future.’

John was employed at Crown Equipment in New Bremen where he worked second shift and was liked by all who worked with him. He has been greatly missed and we are often told of the void that was left when John passed away. He always gave his best because he felt that was expected and deserved by his fellow employees and employer.

John was devoted to his family. He never had a wife or children of his own but his 16 nieces and nephews were his greatest pride‚ joy‚ and love. He was a loving son and brother and never felt he could do enough for them. The great times we had with John will be cherished forever. His laughter at family gatherings cannot be replaced but will not be forgotten. His shining eyes and bright smile will stand out in my mind forever. As his siblings we will greatly miss goofing around with John as we so often did. John was not only my brother‚ but one of my truest and best friends. He was right there beside me when I got into trouble as a kid and he was there for me when I grew up and needed a hand. I love him and he’ll be in my heart forever.

As his mother I often said John had three great loves in his life: his family‚ his dog Pooka‚ and the fire department. At times we couldn’t be sure which came first.

John was a man of great faith whose love and belief showed in his daily life. He always carried a small wooden cross in his pocket. In fact‚ the cross was the only personal belonging that was found on John the day he died. His home was filled with many notes of quotes and bible verses as reminders to him each day of God and his blessings to him.

John will be missed but never forgotten. We are hoping to establish a scholarship fund in his name using funds sent in to the department in his honor and trust that this will help others to continue to learn because of John’s great love.