John "Larry" Ward, 75, of Stuart

Funeral services will be held at a later date with burial in the Calvary Cemetery in Stuart. The Lamb Funeral Home in Greenfield is in charge of the professional arrangements. Online condolences may be left to the family at www.lambfuneralhomes.com.

John “Larry” Ward was born June 14, 1949 in Lorain, Ohio to James Edgar and Effie Mae (Boyd) Ward. He passed away in Stuart, Iowa, in the comfort of his home, as was his wish, on March 18, 2025. His family, including his wife, all four of his children, and many extended family members, were able to be with him in his last few days. Along with his siblings Jimmy, Fred, Debbie and Gary, Larry grew up in Lorain, OH; Waverly, OH; Pickaway, OH; Ft. Pierce, FL; War, WV; and Logan, WV.

In 1969, he married Karen Pinson in Clintwood, Virginia, and they welcomed four children. They lived their married life in Lorain, Ohio, and they later divorced.

In 1980, Larry moved to Kansas, and he lived with his sister Debbie and her family. Along with Debbie’s husband Lenny, he built and ran a supper club, Monticello’s, in Ottawa, Kansas for five years.

When in the Kansas City area, in 1987 he met Jodi Bassett at Arthur Murray’s dance studio. They married May 22, 1993, and lived in the Stuart, Iowa area for nearly 35 years. They relished the simplicity of everyday life, working together planting an annual garden, planting and selling Christmas trees, caring for grandkids, and they enjoyed just being a couple.

Larry worked at Ford Motor Company doing trim assembly, Rose Acres Farms, Glen-Gery brick yard, RaMark Industries, and he worked in the fields of construction, property management, security, maintenance, and as a supervisor at the Adair rest area on Interstate 80. With Jodi and her family, he had a small Christmas tree farm, and he enjoyed “tree season” each November and December. Larry was a jack of all trades, master of none, but he was always willing to try his hand at whatever was needed. He made the best French toast, was quick to lend a helping hand to anyone who needed it, and he judged no one.

Larry’s hobbies included dancing, gardening, coin collecting, Star Trek and other science fiction, and playing the lottery, which paid off in May, 2008, when he won $400,000 in the Powerball. Those winnings provided a new home, where they enjoyed hosting holiday gatherings and visiting family and friends. Larry was most proud of his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, but he also delighted in being “Uncle” to the nieces and nephews of his and Jodi’s family.

Larry was preceded in death by his parents, James Ward and Mae Blankenship, his older brother JImmy, his son-in-law, Randy Hardie, and his granddaughters, Amanda Mae Ward and Miranda Leigh Ward.

Left to remember him with great fondness are Jodi, his wife of 31 years, his children Angela (Jeff Stottlemire) Hardie, Michelle (Brian Mowery), John (Laura) and Jason; his fourteen grandchildren and sixteen great-grandchildren; his brothers Fred (Anne) Ward and Gary Ward, and his sister Debbie Ward. In addition, he is survived by his in-laws Marvin and Janet Bassett, brother-in-law Scott (Angela) Bassett, sister-in-law Amy Bassett and numerous nieces, nephews and friends.