John Pippin
August 07, 1946 - May 12, 2025
Obituary
John D. Pippin of Madison was born to Gerald D. and Jessie B. (Edington) Pippin on Wednesday, August 7, 1946, in Boscobel, WI. He passed away peacefully on Monday, April 12, 2025, at the age of 78. During those 78 years, he led a very fulfilling life.
He enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1964, opting to serve his country before graduating high school. John served for two tours in Vietnam, entering as a Private, and leaving active duty in 1968 as a Corporal. He served 2 more years in the Reserves, then received his Honorable Discharge in 1970. Believing that education was important, John earned his GED while in the Marines. After the military, he studied at United Technical Institute in Milwaukee.
John married Kathy Larson on May 29, 1970. They built a home in Sun Prairie and started their family together. In 1977 he went to work for the University of Wisconsin at their Physical Science Laboratory as a Drafter; initially doing his drawings by hand, John then learned Computer-Aided Design (CAD) when they advanced to this new technology. He loved the work he did there and was very proud of the time he spent working on the CERN Large Hadron Collider and the IceCube project. John retired in 2007 as a Senior CAD Drafter.
He had a life-long love of flying. John worked on a medevac helicopter during one tour in Vietnam and he always wanted to fly. After returning to civilian life, he took flying lessons and learned to fly a helicopter. Eventually, John found ultralights and he built and flew those for many years. He met so many amazing people that have remained a special part of his life even after he was done flying himself.
In his free time, John enjoyed backgammon, poker, and gambling at the casinos. He took trips to Las Vegas and Dubuque, as well as visiting local casinos. If there was a backgammon or poker game/tournament happening in the Madison area, there was a good chance you would see him there.
John loved to talk, he could (and did) start up a conversation with anyone that came near him. He was a regular at the Cottage Cafe and Dairyland Family Restaurant. All of the staff, and most of the customers, knew who John was and would stop by to say hi. He always had a smile and nice word for everyone.
John touched the lives of so many and will be missed by all.
He was proceeded in death by his parents as well as his five siblings, Gerald “Jerry”, Jean, Carolyn, Dennis, and Richard.
He is survived by his ex-wife and forever friend, Kathy Rabe of Madison, his daughters Debi Dahl (Eric) of Deerfield and Diana Lababidi of Madison, his grandson Devon Paull and granddaughter Calia Lababidi, both of Madison, and many nieces and nephews. John is also survived by life-long friend Norm Wills of Poynette, and very special friends Doris Bass, Lee Taylor, Evelyn Fee, and Ron Gollonik.
There will be a Celebration of John’s Life lunch and socialization from 12:00 P.M. to 4:00 P.M. on Sunday, July 20, 2025, at the VFW Post 7591, 301 Cottage Grove Road in Madison. A time of sharing will start at 1:00 P.M. with full Military Honors to follow at 2:00 P.M.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a donation be made to the VFW Post 7591 in John’s name.
Semper Fi, Marine!
To view and sign this guestbook, please visit: www.ryanfuneralservice.com.
Ryan Funeral Home & Cremation Services
2418 N Sherman Ave
608-249-8257
Events
Celebration of Life
Sun Jul 20, 2025 @ 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM
VFW Post 7591 • 301 Cottage Grove Rd, Madison, WI 53716
Time of sharing
Sun Jul 20, 2025 @ 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
VFW Post 7591 • 301 Cottage Grove Rd, Madison, WI 53716
Military Honors
Sun Jul 20, 2025 @ 7:00 PM - 7:15 PM
VFW Post 7591 • 301 Cottage Grove Rd, Madison, WI 53716
Photos
Memories
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Ron
Friend • about 10 hours ago
I’ve known John for 6 years. I met John at the Cottage Cafe and we ate together (John had breakfast while I had lunch) 5 days per week for a few years and then 1 day per week. . John talked, a lot. With John’s hearing loss, it was easier when he did most of the talking and I did the listening. . John had stories about growing up stealing sodas from a local warehouse, chasing the young girls in the neighborhood, enlisting as a Marine to serve his country, his work on the CERN Large Hadron Collider, and building, flying, crashing, rebuilding, and flying his ultralights. I don’t think John would recommend the Marines to anyone he knew, but he was proud to be a Marine. . Some of John’s stories were hard to believe, embellished to put it politely. He would own up to exaggeration, occasionally saying that “This was true”, which left me to wonder if what he said other times was embellished. . I was at John’s home on occasion, trying to help him with a computer or phone problem. Sometimes we would have to call Customer Support. John would let out a string of profanity while we were on hold. I asked him, “Are you a Marine?” He said he was. I then said that he “should stop swearing like a Sailor”. I got my point across, and John kept his swearing down to one or two choice words. . I drove John to the Honda dealer to pick up his beloved Scooter. While John took it for a final test ride, I asked the salesman if he ever sold to an older person, to which he said no. We both wished John the best as he roared off with his Scoot. Each Spring, I would look forward to seeing John come roaring up to the Cottage Cafe on his Scoot. I didn’t get to see him ride it this year. 🙁 . John was a fixture at the Cottage Cafe. He personally trained all the servers that he wanted ‘bacon - medium, eggs - scrambled, toast - light tan - UNCUT, and coffee - lots of coffee, and cold creamer and blue sweetener’. There have been quite a few servers that left recently, but John quickly learned the new servers’ names and they knew him, and his order. . John loved all the servers but he had his favorites. Jesse (John’s Mom’s name was Jessie) and John would kid that she was his Mom. She would joke that he had better do his chores when he got home. . Stephany (Blondie) was another one that caught John’s eye. We never did find out if it was just her waitress flirtation, but we believe she is truly a wonderful person who brought joy to our lives. . Amanda was always there with coffee and her infectious smile. . I often had to help John with names. He knew the person, but the name sometimes got stuck. One name was easy for John to remember. This waitress somehow got whipped cream on her backside. John used this memory to remember that her name was Ashley. . . John did a lot in his life. He loved a few women, but especially loved and treasured his lovely daughter, Debi. John told me about taking young Debi to McDonald's, where she ate part of a cheeseburger and John got to finish off the rest of it. One day, Debi ate the whole cheeseburger, and John went hungry. 😉 . . Don’t wait Hug your loved ones Spend time with your friends Before time runs out . . John, it was my privilege and joy to know you.
DK
Debra Kelter
Friend • 1 day ago
One of the Good ones…… Love Deb & Doug
D
Danette
Friend • 1 day ago
I'm sure the first seat at the Cottage Cafe will be known as John's seat. He will be missed by many.