John Henry Ponsonby, Jr.
March 30, 1953- May 4th, 2025
Aged 72 years

John Henry Ponsonby, Jr. will not, contrary to previous family jokes, be tossed in a coffee can and buried in the backyard with a post hole digger. He passed away peacefully on Sunday, May 4th, 2025 — the Force was with him. We suspect the true cause of death may have been that his rehab facility was located in Bel Aire – a place he'd long sworn he'd never live.

A Celebration of Life will be held Sunday, May 18th, 2025 at 2:00 p.m. at Wild Flower Community School, 1650 N Fairview, Wichita, KS 67203. A reception with light refreshments (spotlighting Spam and Oreos, naturally) will follow the celebration. We kindly request that guests refrain from hugging the family with nuclear arms. The Celebration of Life will also be simulcast online, please contact Alan for a link. A Military Honors Burial will take place Monday, May 19th at 2:00 p.m. at Kansas Veterans Cemetery at Winfield, 1208 N College Street in Winfield, KS 67156. We tried to make that part funny, but, well, some things you just don't joke about.

John was born on March 30, 1953 to John Henry Ponsonby, Sr. and Joan Estelle (Alspach) Ponsonby. He was the oldest of seven — followed by Jeanne Owens (Nelson, deceased), James Ponsonby (Lana), Joy Goller (David), Jeffrey Ponsonby (Lynne), Julie Ponsonby Harris, and JoAnne Middaugh (Rod). Whew, what a mouthful!  The Magnificent Seven grew up on Massasoit Street on the South Side of Chicago. The family later moved to Denver, Indiana, where John reinvented himself in high school with the help of a powder blue Nehru jacket. He graduated from North Miami High School in 1971 as the new "cool guy." As the eldest of the family, John set many examples — some cautionary — like setting the garage on fire, and totaling two of the family cars. Whenever his siblings questioned why he got privileges such as staying up after bedtime, eating pizza and watching movies with his dad every Friday night, or having his own room the answer was always the same: "Because John's the oldest."

After high school, John enlisted in the Navy and served six years aboard destroyers in the Mediterranean and South Pacific, including time on the gunline during the Vietnam War. He often shared these stories again. And again (and again). If the infamous "Doc" is reading this — the family has questions. Following his service, John earned his Associate's Degree from New Hampshire 1 Vocational Technical College in 1979. It was in New Hampshire that he met Karen, the love of his life. After just six weeks of dating John proposed; they married in Springvale, Maine in 1981. It's probably just as well that they only dated for 6 weeks because every establishment they ever went on a date burned to the ground or was shuttered by the time they had been married a year. They celebrated 44 years together just weeks before his passing.

In 1984, they welcomed their daughter Kristen (Ponsonby) Rowley (Keith). Their sons Alan and Frank Ponsonby were welcomed into the family in 1992. The family made their home in Acton, Maine and for many years ran Emery Mills Hardware, a mom-and-pop store where John solved plumbing mysteries like they did in Apollo 13: "We've got to find a way to make this fit into the hole for this, using nothing but that." After discovering he had this knack, as well as a love for creating plumbing solutions, John pursued his plumber's license. He delighted in doing repair work on "adventure houses" from 2001 until retiring in 2019. John's plumbing motto was: "It's pretty easy — s*** flows downhill, it's all you can eat, and payday is Friday." Ever the professional, John also wore suspenders religiously to avoid the dreaded plumber's crack. Said suspenders will be on display at his Celebration of Life — because of course they will. Beyond his career, John served 11 years on the Acton Volunteer Fire Department and continued his passion for service throughout his life. After moving to Wichita, Kansas in 2004 he went on mission trips to Myanmar and Cambodia with Triumphant Ministries International, and participated in tornado recovery efforts in Greensburg, KS and Joplin, Missouri. He volunteered with Volunteer Christian Builders, the Wichita Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and the Civil Air Patrol - where he earned the 2010 Kansas Wing Aerospace Educator of the Year award. He also ministered to the homeless at Church on the Street.

John was a devoted family man and adored his grandchildren — Kati, Quincy, Keaton, and Dexter Rowley. Some of his most delightful and treasured Grandpa moments were discussing vet school options with Kati, doing woodwork projects with Quincy, telling jokes with Keaton, taking Dexter shopping, and sharing his love of fishing with all of them.
John never wanted a fuss. In that spirit, the family kindly asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to:

1. Triumphant Ministries International   P.O. Box 1945, Branson, MO 65615         https://triumphantministries.com/give-online/

2. Wild Flower Community School   1650 N Fairview, Wichita, KS 67203               https://givebutter.com/J4KDuQ

3. Your Local Volunteer Fire Department

If you knew John, you likely have a story — probably funny, possibly bizarre, definitely memorable. He was a man of faith, a man of service with a patriotic heart, and a man who could always fix your faucet and make you laugh while doing it. He'll be deeply missed and lovingly remembered — suspenders and all.

Baker Funeral Home Valley Center - Condolences may be left for the family at www.bakerfhvc.com