John Edward Houf, 97, of Mexico, passed away on Thursday, December 29, 2022, at Heritage Hall Nursing Center in Centralia.

Memorial Services will be at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, January 4, at St. John's Lutheran Church with Rev. Donaldo Sonntag officiating. Burial will follow in East Lawn Memorial Park.

Visitation is Wednesday from 10 a.m. until time of services at the church.

John was born on September 11, 1925, in New Bloomfield, the son of Ralph and Estelle (Blythe) Houf. He graduated from Mexico High School in 1943 and served in the U.S. Army during World War II, stationed in Hawaii and Korea. After being discharged in 1947, he attended Hannibal La-Grange College and graduated in 1950.

John then served in the Korean War and was stationed in Japan. After being discharged in 1952, he married Kathleen Roesler on October 12, 1952. He attended the University of Missouri and went to work at Missouri Power and Light, retiring in 1989.

Survivors include three children, Marilyn Thurston (David White) of Mexico, Laurie Strait of Rock Hill, South Carolina, and John J. (Jacqueline) Houf of Kansas City, Missouri; three grandchildren, Donna (Eric) Kreutz of Mexico and Ross (Mirandia) and Robert Strait, both of Rock Hill, South Carolina; and five great-grandsons, Eric, Zackery and Hunter Kreutz of Mexico, and Pierce and Wylie Briar Strait of Rock Hill, South Carolina.

John was preceded in death by his wife, Kathleen; one daughter, Pam Thurston; one son-in-law, Wylie Strait; and two brothers, Will and Walter Houf.

Memorial donations may be made to St. John's Lutheran Church or the American Heart Association. They may be sent in care of Arnold Funeral Home, 425 S. Jefferson, Mexico, MO 65265.