John H. Beales Jr., 88

Fort Calhoun native and former Omaha resident John H. Beales Jr., 88, of Waukegan, Ill., died Jan. 11, 2011, in Waukegan.

Services were Sunday, Jan. 16, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Waukegan. A memorial will be held at 1 p.m. May 7, at the Fort Calhoun Presbyterian Church.

John H. Beales Jr. was born May 3, 1922, in Fort Calhoun.

He served with the 11th Armored Division from Nov. 15, 1942, to Feb. 10, 1946, helping to liberate Mauthausen Concentration Camp in Austria on May 5, 1945.

He resisted the segregation of Trinity Lutheran Church in Jackson, Miss., and was a founding member of Resurrection Lutheran Church in Jackson.

He was the beloved "Uncle Johnny" of many in Fort Calhoun and the Nebraska panhandle and is remembered as a "harmonica virtuoso extraordinaire."

He is survived by his children, Howard and Char Beales, Mitchell Beales and Sandy Kubillus, Marcia Beales and Pete Martin and Janet and Lou Borden; five grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Ruth Louise (Heipmann) Beales of Deshler.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Chicago Botanic Garden: (847) 835-8333.

#2 Printed in the May 6, 2011 Omaha World-Herald

Beales, John H. Jr.

Born May 3, 1922 in Ft. Calhoun. Married April 22, 1949 at Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church in Omaha to Ruth Louise Helpmann of Deshler. Died January 11, 2011 in Waukegan, IL. Served November 15, 1942 to February 10, 1946 with the Eleventh Armored Division, which liberated Mauthausen on May 5, 1945: let none forget or deny. Resisted the segregation of Trinity Lutheran Church, Jackson, MS, and was a founding member of the Resurrection Church, Jackson, MS. American Academy of Actuaries since 1969. Harmonica virtuouso extraordinaire!

A Service celebrating his life and the 89th anniversary of his birth will be held at 1pm Saturday, May 7th at Fort Calhoun Presbyterian Church, 123 N. 13th St., Fort Calhoun, NE. Luncheon to follow in the Fellowship Hall.

~~~Obituaries courtesy of the Nebraska Washington County Genealogical Society. Newspaper clippings on file in the Public Library, Blair, Nebraska~~~

FindaGrave #87372838