After a year long battle with cancer, John Nelson Brooks circummed to medical complications on November 18, 2024. John Nelson Brooks, affectionately known as Johnny, was born on October 8, 1948, to Cecil and Eva (White) Brooks. He spent his early years in Cooperton, Oklahoma, until his family relocated to Hobart, Oklahoma. Growing up alongside his older sister Kaye and younger sisters Jana and Kim, Johnny was immersed in a family life centered around farming cotton and wheat. He attended school in Hobart, graduating in 1966. During high school, he was active in football, participated in 4-H and Future Farmers of America by showing pigs, and enjoyed driving and drag racing his 57 Chevy.
After high school, Johnny pursued a degree in diesel mechanics at Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. Concurrently, he served in the Army National Guard as a radar crewman with the 171st Field Artillery, achieving the rank of Specialist 5th Class. Upon graduating from OSU Tech, he began his career with KOCH Industries, where he worked for 24 years.
In 1971, Johnny married Karen Sternberger. They welcomed their first daughter, Stacie Lynn, in 1972, followed by a second daughter, Sarah Elizabeth, in 1976. The couple moved several times during their early marriage but eventually settled in Woodward, Oklahoma, where they raised their daughters for 14 years. In 1990, they relocated to Wichita, Kansas. In 1994, Johnny fulfilled a lifelong dream by opening his own diesel mechanic repair shop in Antlers, Oklahoma, which he operated with Karen for three years. In 1997, they returned to Wichita to be closer to their daughters and grandchildren. Johnny continued to work for Pepsi Co until his retirement in 2015. In retirement, Johnny cherished time spent at the family ranch in western Oklahoma and Kansas, enjoying wildlife and pursuing his passion for deer hunting. His hobbies also included watching football—particularly rooting for the University of Oklahoma and the Dallas Cowboys- watching car races, building race cars, buying and trading guns, and tinkering with his old Willys Jeep. Known for his witty sense of humor and being a good neighbor, Johnny made many friends throughout his life.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents and parents Cecil and Eva Brooks, as well as a beloved cousin A.J. Brown. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Karen; daughters Stacie (Dean )Clarkson of Afton, OK, and Sarah (Jamison )Yoder of Garden Plain, KS; seven grandchildren: Austin Robinson, Katie Clarkson, Emily Yoder, Kyndall Clarkson, Lance Yoder, Karlie Clarkson, and Cody Yoder; one great-grandson Kollin Clarkson-Lumpkins; three sisters: Kaye Julian, Jana (Richard) Hill, and Kim (Gary) Whittle; along with numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, friends, and his cherished dog Maggie Mae.
Celebration of Life Service: 11:00 a.m. Monday, November 25, 2024 at Hillside Funeral Home West, 2929 W. 13th Street North, Wichita, Kansas 67203. In lieu of flowers memorial may be given to Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice 313 S. Market, Wichita, Kansas 67202-9610 or Elwood County Fire Department, 105 W. Central Avenue, Hardtner, Kansas 67057.
