John N. Nauman

John N. Nauman, 89, of Davenport, died Thursday, January 2, 2025 at Senior Star, Davenport.

Funeral services and Mass of Christian Burial for John will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m., Monday, January 6, 2025 at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, Davenport. Burial will be in Rock Island National Cemetery, Arsenal Island. Visitation will be held from 2 until 5 p.m. Sunday at the Halligan-McCabe-DeVries Funeral Home, Davenport with the rosary prayed at the conclusion. Additional visitation will be held from 9:30 a.m. until the time of the Mass Monday at church. Memorials may be made to St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church or the Alzheimer’s Association of the Quad Cities.

John Nicholas Nauman was born on January 3, 1935 in Kickapoo, Illinois, a son of Anthony John and Veronica Apolonia (Schaub) Nauman. He grew up on a farm near Kickapoo and learned the value of hard work. In 1955 John started working for Caterpillar sweeping floors on 3rd shift before entering a two-year machine shop training program. Following his return from the Navy, John returned to Caterpillar where he retired in 1988 as a planning processor following 35 years of service.

In 1955, John joined the Naval Reserves in East Peoria and was called up to active duty in November of 1957 and assigned to the USS Forrestal in Norfolk, Virginia. During his service, the ship spent six months in the Mediterranean and on a cruise that was up in the Artic. 

John was united in marriage to Lucille D. “Lucy” Covert on February 10, 1962 at St. John’s Catholic Church. They have shared almost 63 years of marriage together.

John was devoted to his Catholic faith and was active parishioner at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, and following his retirement worked on many projects around their campus. He also was very active at the Habitat for Humanity Restore for over twelve years, giving thousands of hours of volunteer time. John was also a member of the Knights of Columbus Loras Council 532 for many years before joining St. Paul's Knights of Columbus Council 15725 and the Quad City Baseball Fan’s Association that operated the ball park formerly known as John O’Donnell. 

Those left to cherish John’s memory is his wife, Lucy, Davenport; children: Terry (Jeff) Williamson, Seattle, Washington, Sue Rigler (Todd Kessel), Scottsdale, Arizona, John “Bud” Nauman, Lexington Park, Maryland, and David Nauman (Renee Stone), Davenport; grandchildren: Ashley, Danielle, Nicholas, Max, Robbie, Catie, James, Ford, Lucy, and Emma; sisters: Joan Karl, Texas, and Helen Martin, Georgia.

He was preceded in death by his parents.