John Lane

MANSFIELD -- John Howard Lane, 73, passed away Saturday, May 23, with his loving wife Donna at his side. Funeral services: 11:00 am on Wednesday, May 27 at Blessing Funeral Home Chapel, 401 Elm St., Mansfield. Interment: John will be laid to rest in a private ceremony at the Dallas-Ft. Worth National Cemetery. Visitation: 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Tuesday, May 26, at Blessing Funeral Home. Memorials: His family has requested that in lieu of flowers, memorial donations be made to the ALS Association either on-line at www.alsa.org, or by mail to the ALS Association, 27001 Agoura Road, Suite 250, Calabasas Hills, CA 91301-5104. John Lane was born in Evanston, Illinois on December 7, 1935 to Irene and Howard Lane. He was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), better known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, in 2006. John moved to Texas after serving his country in the U. S. Army. He and his beloved bride Donna were married in August 1964 and later moved to Mansfield, Texas where they have resided close to the Walnut Creek Country Club where John pursued his great love of golf since 1978. John had a long and distinguished career with Dresser Industries where he managed Dresser's corporate headquarters office building located in downtown Dallas. John devoted much of his life to golf, starting as a caddy in New York where he was also a Long Island State Golf Champion. He loved to tell the story about literally stepping into the golf shoes of baseball legend Babe Ruth at the golf club where he caddied because he was the only person with feet large enough to fill Babe's shoes. John went on to become Club Champion at Walnut Creek and to play in the Colonial Pro Am Tournament in Ft. Worth. John was a great lover of all sports and at one time considered a career in sports broadcasting or writing. He had 3 holes-in-one during his years in golf and was known for his keen wit and marvelous sense of humor, both on and off the golf course. John was a true gentleman and someone that family and friends could count on to give the shirt off of his back. John was also a great lover of dogs and would say, "if there are no dogs in heaven, I want to go where they go." While his dogs Wiley and Newman, and his cat Oreo faithfully watched over him during his illness, he was particularly fond of his departed companions Saiklon and Sinbad. John Lane was truly one in a million. Survivors: John is survived by his wife, Donna; his two sisters, Joann Traeger Wilson and Kay Conover; his nieces and nephews (and their spouses), Loren Traeger, John Traeger, David Conover, Betsy Parody, Susan Mayman, Amy Arnold, Suzan Berggren and Sam Murphy; and a number of great nieces and nephews.

John Lane

December 7, 1935 - May 23, 2009