White Funeral Home
400 First Street West
Independence, Iowa 50644

Independence – Richard Lee Van Horn, 80 years old, was born on September 13, 1935, in Des Moines, Iowa.  He entered into eternal rest onJanuary 30, 2016, in Las Vegas, Nevada, surrounded by his family.  He is preceded in death by his parents, Julia B. (Fosse) and Harry F. Van Horn, and a step sister, Carol Stahle.

He graduated from Independence High School in 1954 where he played on the State Championship Basketball Team.  He joined the U.S. Army on June 22, 1954, and served in Germany.  He was honorably discharged in 1956.

On February 16, 1958, he and Patricia Cornwell were married.  They had 3 sons, Victor (Rosemarie), Todd (Kelly), and Mark Van Horn.

He was employed in 1970 by the Chicago Fire Department and retired in 1996 after 26 years of service.  A favorite Fire Department story took place on his first day.  Firemen work a 24 hour shift, so they take a money collection for groceries and meals for the month.  He put in his $20 (which was a lot back in 1970) and the cook asked him what his favorite meal was.  He told him he would be okay with anything except Chinese food.  Guess what the cook made for dinner that evening, yep, Chop Suey!  The cook had made a special meal – steak and potatoes – kept hidden from him until after the joke had been played.  He worked part time delivering flowers when not at the firehouse.  Patricia really enjoyed all the flower arrangements and the live Flocked Christmas tree.

He enjoyed camping and all types of sports, golfing, fishing, coaching, cards and board games.  Another favorite story is when playing golf with family members; they snuck an exploding golf ball onto his tee shot.  His eyes lit up like 100 watt light bulbs when the ball disintegrated upon contact.

Another enjoyment was woodworking and making crafts.  One year he made all kinds of home and yard crafts to sell at the neighborhood fair.  He sold out of everything and his friends were a little upset because none of their stuff sold.  He taught his son, Mark, how to use an address book to assist him while making pharmaceutical deliveries for a company he was working for – called of all things, “Mark’s Drugs.”

He was a brother to Norma, Harry, and Patricia.  He was a grandfather of 6 and uncle to many nieces and nephews.

Graveside services will be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 25, 2016, at Mt. Hope Cemetery in Independence, Iowa.

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.  May he rest in peace.  Amen.