John Alan Fitzwater, 78, of Olathe, KS, passed from his earthly home on Monday, January 17, 2022, at Olathe Medical Center in Olathe, KS.  Born July 18, 1943, in his Grandparent's home east of Protection, KS, he was the son of Garland John and Irene Christine (Ditch) Fitzwater.  John grew up and helped out on his family farm, west of Protection, with his parents, 2 brothers, and  5 sisters.

He graduated from Protection High School in 1961 and attended Dodge City Community College, where he was well known for his band, "The Tornados".

On October 19, 1963, John married LaRetta Morgan and to this union were born 2 children: Darin and Dawn.  LaRetta left for her heavenly home on November 18, 2007.

John served in the U.S. Air Force from 1966, receiving honorable discharge in 1969.  He served in Vietnam as aircraft maintenance and entertaining troops and officers.  He served in the reserves until 1972.

John worked in all aspects of construction and property management, using skills taught by his father or self-taught.  He and his wife, LaRetta, owned and operated The Image Club and he and his brother, Bill, owned a cleaning company, both in Garden City, KS.

John's passion was always music.  He formed the bands: "Three's Company" and "Country Fever", performing and entertaining over much of Kansas as lead vocalist.  John was an entertainer, self-taught on guitar and electric piano, and had the amazing ability to recall lyrics to almost any song requested and sing it perfectly.  The highlight of his career was when he and LaRetta moved to Nashville, where he recorded an album and lived for a few years.  While there he attended Fanfare and became friends with Nat and Ann Stuckey and many others in the music industry.

He moved back to Kansas and settled in the Kansas City area, where he was a property manager until retiring.  While in Kansas City, he continued to entertain, mostly at the American Legion.  Many friends and family have copies of the CDs he recorded.  There was always music and singing at family reunions.

On May 14, 2010, he married Dixie (Reber) Hamadani in Olathe, KS, where they resided until his death.

John is survived by his wife: Dixie Fitzwater of Olathe, KS; son: Darin Fitzwater (Amanda) of Kansas City, KS; daughter: Dawn DeCius (Mike) of Tacoma, WA; step-children: Jason Hamadani (Michlah) of San Clemente, CA, Tiffany Warid (Chris Crownover) of Olathe, KS, and Jonathan McConnaughey (Miranda) of Olathe, KS; four sisters: Carol Petty (Jim) of Pryor, OK, Betty Jo Maris of Protection, KS, Sue Page of Protection, KS, and Sandy Hoffman of Buttermilk, KS; sisters-in-law: Mary Fitzwater of Protection, KS and Janet Fitzwater (Charley Wooden) of Enid, OK; eleven grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

In addition to his wife, LaRetta, he was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers: Jack Fitzwater and Bill Fitzwater; one sister: Nona Fitzwater; and brothers-in-law: Marvin Maris, Roger Hoffman, and Bruce Page.

His love of the Lord, family, and music was John Fitzwater.

Public Calling Times are from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursday, January 27, 2022, at Hatfield-Prusa Funeral Home, Coldwater, KS.

Graveside Service is at 1:00 p.m., Friday, January 28, 2022, at Protection Cemetery in Protection, KS, with Pastor Wade Russell presiding.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to Kansas Honor Flight, Inc. in care of Hatfield-Prusa Funeral Home, P.O. Box 417, Coldwater, KS 67029.