John Robertson Rampton, Jr.

On April 30th, John slipped away from us, on to  the next great adventure. His passing was easy, his life well and fully  lived. John was born on Easter Sunday , April 16, 1922 to parents John R. Rampton and Alfreda Hansen. He had 1 full sister, Lucille, half brother Ralph and 3 half sisters, Ruth, Wilma and Maxine.  John was born in Bountiful and lived there his entire life. John learned hard work at an early age. When his father had a serious stroke at the age of 62 during the depression years and the bank foreclosure agents came to call, John and his mother worked on their chicken farm and cleaned neighbors coops  until they paid off the debt and saved the farm. He continued to do hard manual labor during his childhood, all the while excelling in school. He worked at the local movie house and local farms to help the family earn money.   He attended the University of Utah and was a member of the ROTC there. When World War II broke out, he was scheduled to attend Officers' Candidate School  when he broke his ankle, dashing his assignment to Officer's Candidate School. After 3 months of "rehab" in Brigham City military hospital (which he hitchhiked out of regularly) he was again accepted into Officer's Candidate school.  Fate intervened again when his father passed away, after his furlough home for that, OCS was no longer an option and he was assigned to the Army as a rifleman. Slogging through Bavaria,  France and Germany was apparently thought to be great rehab for a fractured ankle.  He considered that one of life's greatest ironies. When the war with Germany was over, he ran a string of movies houses in Bavaria and Austria for the troops because he could make a projector work.  
      Upon the end of World War II John returned home and opted to go on an LDS mission.  He was called to a mission in Sweden, home of his mother's ancestors.  This pleased him immensely because he could indulge in a lot of genealogy and skiing. He enjoyed his mission after the horrors of war and considered it a success.
     When he returned home from his mission, he attended the University of Utah, accepted into Law School.  During the course of his schooling he met a beautiful young woman, Mary Stringham who he thought was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. They were soon married  in 1950 and John continued law school, graduating with his JD. He passed the bar and was elected Justice of the Peace. He also accepted a position as Asst.. General Council with the Utah State Tax Commision.  In 1955, John and Mary were blessed by being able to adopt a son, Joel. Mary was soon pregnant and a daughter Sue was born in 1956. He accepted a position as an Administrative Judge with the U.S. Dept. of the Interior where he worked for more than 40 years. He was promoted to District Chief Administrative Judge in 1989 and retired in 1994.  During the course of his more than 40 year career he traveled extensively around the United States  and Alaska. Mary and the children were able to join him frequently.
    John was an avid Scouter, serving as Scoutmaster for more than 14 years of their ward troop #214. They had one of the most successful troops in the LDS Church,  turning out more Eagle Scouts and missionaries than any other district in the Boy Scouts.  Monthly overnight camping trips, annual Scout Camps and annual 50 Mile Hikes were open to everyone. He always carried his pack and at least one or two others for any scout that was fatigued.
John completed his last 50 miler well into his 70's.  He was awarded his Silver Beaver for his dedication and continued on as staff in Silver Moccasin camps for a number of years.  He continued to attend summer Scout camps well into his 80's when possible. His goal was to provide all scouts with the opportunity to attain their Eagle Scout and live comfortably out of doors.  He succeeded  many times over.
     John was extraordinarily active his entire life, he took up skiing again  in his 70's and skied well into his 80's. He golfed, played racquetball and was an avid member of the Deseret gym.  He was an intellectual, a voracious reader and life long learner. He was determined to master math and quantum physics before he died. He was interested in all subjects and always had  a college course on some subject or another on his DVD player.  His favorite author was Carl Sagan.  He was a Master Gardener and was elected Master Gardener of the year in 1998. His life and landscape reflected his love of the outdoors. He had an eye for color and landscape design and was a favorite among his fellow Master Gardeners.
    He was devoted to his wife of 65 years, Mary and her death 5 weeks ago was the most devastating thing that ever happened to him.  He was not happy without her by his side. His official cause of death may read "pneumonia" but he really died of a broken heart. They are together again.
    He was proceeded in death by his parents, all of his siblings, his son Joel, his stepgrandaughter Cori Jo, and his wife Mary. Survived by his daughter Sue (Sonny) Dyle, grandchildren  Nathan, Erin, Greg, Cliff, Megan, Alexia, Brandi LeAnne and 13 great grandchildren.
     Funeral services will be held Monday, May 4th, 2015 at the Bountiful 24th Ward Chapel, 720 East 550 North , Bountiful at 11 am.  Friends and family may visit Sunday, May 3rd between 5 and 7pm at Russon Brothers Mortuary, 295 South Main, Bountiful or Monday morning at the church 1 hour prior to service. Interment at Bountiful City Cemetery. Online guest book at www.russonmortuary.com.
In lieu of flowers please make a donation to the Salvation Army or Paws for Purple Hearts (pawsforpurplehearts.org)