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John Gardner Jr.

February 20, 1941 - March 3, 2021

John Gardner Jr., 80, of Ankeny IA passed away on March 3, 2021 after a long-fought battle with heart disease.  John was born on February 20, 1941 to Opal and John Gardner Sr. in Des Moines IA.

Funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at Memorial Services of Iowa (4208 N. Ankeny Blvd). Visitation will be an hour prior to the service, also at the funeral home. Burial will be immediately following the funeral at Ankeny Memorial Gardens. To view the live stream of John’s funeral service please follow this link: https://vimeo.com/521006534

John worked most of his life doing drywall, where he was very meticulous about his work.

John enjoyed fishing, camping, and racing his dwarf car, number 41.  John in earlier days participated in weightlifting and was very proud of all his 1^st place trophies.  Most of all John loved his 2 dogs, Pepe and Ragsy.

John is survived by his partner, Alisa Corll of Ankeny; son, John Gardner III of Des Moines; three grandchildren, John Gardner IV (Jamie) of Des Moines, Joshua Gardner of Des Moines, and Courtney Hudson of Ankeny; five great-grandchildren; sisters, Annie (Jerry) Chapman of Mississippi and Patti (Lacy) Austin of Texas; as well as other family members.

John was preceded in death by his wife, Vicki Gardner; son, Loren Lee Hudson; sisters, Esther Sodergren and Joyce Jones; and his parents.

Memorial Contributions may be made to the American Heart Association or the Animal Rescue League in loving memory of John.