John James Fitzgerald, Jr., 80, of Hudson passed away peacefully on July 17, 2021 at Centerville Care and Rehab.

John was born February 8, 1941 to John and Theressa (Gandrau) Fitzgerald. He was the second youngest of 13 children whom grew up on the family farm in Emmet Township. John attended school in Beresford and enlisted in the US Navy in 1958. John, proud of his service, was honorably discharged in 1964.

John was married to his wife of 55 years Rose Marie (Ringling) on February 26, 1966, in Humboldt, IA. They eventually made their home in Beresford, attending St. Teresa Catholic Church. Together they had 6 children, 15 grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren, with more on the way.

John made a career driving truck for 42 years. In addition to owning his own truck, he also drove for Sioux City Motor Express, Ace Lines, Apple Lines and Specialized Transport. Many knew him on the CB as "Slippery John". His driving legacy continues today with sons, John and Dallas.

When home, John shared his knowledge and passion of cars teaching his children how to build motors and work on their own fleet of vehicles. Son, Mike, inspired by his father's passion, chose auto body repair as his career. Anyone around John knew Ford was the only real auto manufacturer.

John, accompanied by his daughter Pam, completed one last mission on May 7, 2019 with Midwest Honor Flight. This was an experience John talked about often and shared with his group of friends that gathered at Truck Towne for coffee. John was a man of few words, interjecting "one-liners" where he could. You might recall seeing him running the Beresford VFW after retiring. John was also a member of the Beresford American Legion. The family recently broke John out of the care center to celebrate the Independence Day and daughter Fallon's birthday. The celebration was attended by John's family, a gathering that will forever be remembered by everyone, including his wife Rose Marie, whom got stuck cleaning up everyone's mess as usual!

John is survived by his wife Rose Marie; 5 children, John of Beresford, Michael (Shari) of Lehi, Utah, Pamela (Brian) of Hudson, Dallas (Robin) of Akron and Fallon of Hudson; 15 grandchildren, 2 great-grandchildren, brother, Gerald (Geraldine) Fitzgerald and a sister, Veronica Muller both of Beresford, brother-in-law, Rich (Mary) Ringling and sister-in-law, Lori (Mike) Scholl of Platte, SD and many nieces and nephews.

John was preceded in death by a son, Reno; his parents, John and Theressa; and siblings, Edmund, Mary, Leo, Delilah, Lucille, Helen, Violet, Millie, Marcella and Marjorie.

Mass of Christian burial will be 10AM Friday, July 23, 2021 at St. Teresa Catholic Church in Beresford with military honors at Emmet Cemetery. Visitation will be 4-8PM Thursday at the church. The family will be present 5-7PM with a prayer service at 7PM. Memorials may be made to the Midwest Honor Flight or the Centerville Care & Rehab Center.