On October 28, 2016 John “JP” Penner passed away tragically at the age of 63 years.  He was a fun-loving father, grandfather, son, brother, uncle and friend.  
John was born to Ed and Helena Penner on December 31, 1952 in Portage la Prairie.  He lived in Portage and area until 1966 at which time his family moved to MacGregor and began farming.  John worked very hard on the farm and attended school in MacGregor.  He married his high school sweetheart, Verla Boehlig, on October 22, 1972.  They had a dairy farm at Bagot for 3 years then moved to Katrime, where their first daughter, Julie was born.  In 1977, they settled on a grain farm south of MacGregor where the family was completed with the addition of another daughter, Jodie.  John said many times over the years that when he was growing up, the only thing he ever wanted to do was be a farmer.  When it was no longer viable to continue, John began his next career as a long haul truck driver.  In 1984 the family moved off the farm into MacGregor.  Eventually, John found his way back into the agriculture industry and spent the rest of his career in Ag Retail with various companies such as A&M Soil, Munro Farm Supply, and most recently, Jonair Ltd.  His work was important to him and customer service was top priority.  He was well loved by his customers, and he made no distinction between customer and friend.  
John loved fishing, camping, travelling, good (loud) music, hosting BBQs, vacations in Mexico, curling, playing cards and Nascar.  But the center of his world, his pride and joy, were his “sweethearts,” the grandchildren.  He loved taking them places, teaching them things, and planning adventures.
John was predeceased by his grandson Donovan Willsey (2009) and his father Ed Penner (2015). John leaves to mourn his passing his daughters Julie (Wayne) Friesen, Jodie (Doug) Willsey; grandchildren Olivia, Grace and Cooper Friesen, Morgan and Sheridan Willsey; his mother Helena Penner, as well as sisters Trudy (Anton) Wiebe, Evelyn (Wayne) Van Mackelbergh, Valorie (Wayne) Unrau, nieces and nephews, colleagues and friends.  
Should friends so desire, donations in John’s memory may be made to support the Canadian Food Grains Bank through: FOCUS (Feed Other Countries Undo Starvation) c/o Tony Peters, RR #2, Box 37, Portage La Prairie  MB  R1N 3A2.