John Gildersleeve

John was born January 13, 1946, in Fargo, North Dakota to Tom and Mildred Gildersleeve. He lived in Fargo through high school where he attended Fargo Central. He also attended NDSU and the University of MN for Engineering. Later, he completed many additional hours of course work to further his engineering career. 

His first engineering job was at Bemis Corporation where he worked in Packaging and Design and holds a patent for designing the “Bemisqueeze” compression shipping package. Other employers included Chain Gear, Warner Electric and S. J. Electro Systems and he holds several patents from those employers. In 2007, he retired from Standex Air Distribution Products ending his 42-year career in Engineering. 

John could fix anything! His family was always bringing him projects that needed his attention. He was meticulous about his lawn, and it was always a battle between him and the dandelions. 

In 1989, he married his soul mate, Judy, and they built a home on Cotton Lake. John did all the excavating and landscaping. With his bare hands he built two large garages, a beach house and the sugar shack. John always said the lake was for the kids and he made sure that they had a good time in, on or by the water. A true outdoorsman, he was always outside whether it was 30 below or 90 above. He hunted, fished, camped, gardened, cut wood and made maple syrup. John also loved to travel! When he and Judy retired, they made many trips to the BWCA and Canada to canoe, camp and fish on their favorite lakes. They even drove their camper to Alaska for 5 weeks where John enjoyed salmon fishing. They made yearly trips to the south coast: his favorite place being the Texas seashore.

In December 2021, John was diagnosed with metastatic cancer. He fought hard and long, but on Sunday, June 30, 2024, God called him home. 

He is survived by his wife, Judy. Children: Andrea, John (Yvonne), Diane (Roy), Kris (Cory), Tom and Chrissy (Erik). Grandchildren: Jessica, Kylee, Brandan, Brett (Laura), Courtney (Chase), Thorin, Breanna (Madison), James (Katie), Nate, Alesha, Taelem and Kayah. Great grandchildren: Noah, Bella, Layne, Gannon, Easton, Emma Lyn and Kalvin. Sister: Sara (Bill) and sisters-in-law: Arlene, Shirley, Carol (Larry), Margie, Linda (Wayne), and Donna and many nieces and nephews. 

A visitation for John Gildersleeve will be held at David-Donehower Funeral Home, 609 US HWY 10 E., Detroit Lakes, MN 56501, on Monday, July 8, 2024 from 5 to 7 PM. A prayer service will close out the evening at 6:30 PM. The funeral service will be held at Lund Lutheran Church, 25213 County Hwy 21, Detroit Lakes, MN 56501, on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 at 11 AM with Mary Anders officiating. 

David-Donehower Funeral Home is serving the family. For more information, please visit DavidDonehower.com, or call (218) 847-4147.